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. 2010 Dec 23:4:188.
doi: 10.3389/fnbeh.2010.00188. eCollection 2010.

Comparative Fear-Related Behaviors to Predator Odors (TMT and Natural Fox Feces) before and after Intranasal ZnSO(4) Treatment in Mice

Romain Hacquemand  1 , Laurence Jacquot, Gérard Brand
Affiliations

Comparative Fear-Related Behaviors to Predator Odors (TMT and Natural Fox Feces) before and after Intranasal ZnSO(4) Treatment in Mice

Romain Hacquemand et al. Front Behav Neurosci. .

Abstract

The possibility that synthetic 2,4,5-trimethylthiazoline (TMT), frequently used to induce unconditioned fear in rodents, could be more a pungent odor activating intranasal trigeminal nerve fibers rather than a predator odor index is currently discussed. In order to explore this question, the present study compared fear-related behaviors to predator odors (synthetic 10% TMT and natural fox feces) and toluene (as an irritant compound without ecological significance) before and after intranasal ZnSO(4) perfusion which is known to provoke transient anosmia. Results show that natural fox feces could be consider as a pure olfactory (CN I) nerve stimulant while 10% TMT appeared to be a mixed olfactory (CN I) and trigeminal (CN V) nerves stimulant with a great olfactory power and a low trigeminal power. These findings suggest that behavioral neuroscience studies should use concentrations lower than 10% TMT to obtain fear-related behaviors similar to those obtained with natural fox feces odor.

Keywords: TMT; fear conditioning; fox odor; olfactory nerve; trigeminal nerve; zinc sulfate.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Histological aspect of olfactory epithelium before (A) and 3 days after (B) intranasal perfusion (100× enlargement) indicating a decrease of the epithelium thickness and an important loss of cells in (B).
Figure 2
Figure 2
Comparative time spent (mean and standard error) in the odorized half-part of a corridor maze between synthetic 10% TMT, natural fox feces, and 10% toluene odorant conditions for a female mice group (n = 10) before (Session 1, 1 week before treatment) and after (Session 2, 3 days after treatment) ZnSO4 intranasal perfusion and for a control female mice group (n = 10).
Figure 3
Figure 3
Comparative duration of freezing (mean and standard error) between synthetic 10% TMT, natural fox feces, and 10% toluene odorant conditions for a female mice group (n = 10) before (Session 1, 1 week before treatment) and after (Session 2, 3 days after treatment) ZnSO4 intranasal perfusion and for a control female mice group (n = 10).
Figure 4
Figure 4
Comparative velocity (mean and standard error) between synthetic 10% TMT, natural fox feces, and 10% toluene odorant conditions for a female mice group (n = 10) before (Session 1, 1 week before treatment) and after (Session 2, 3 days after treatment) ZnSO4 intranasal perfusion and for a control female mice group (n = 10).
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