Amphetamine stereotypy: the influence of environmental factors and prepotent behavioral patterns on its topography and development

Abstract

This report describes a series of experiments, all of which demonstrate a strong contribution of the behavioral pattern manifested at the time of initial amphetamine injection to the topography and development of the stereotypy that develops with chronic amphetamine intoxication. These initial behavioral patterns reflect (i) learned behaviors, (ii) species-specific behaviors, (iii) behaviors associated with amphetamine arousal, and (iv) novel behaviors reflecting unique environmental circumstances prevailing at the time of administration. In an experiment using eight dogs administered amphetamine in a situation which allowed interaction between the animals, the behavioral stereotypies that developed were comprised of the social interaction patterns ongoing at the time of initial drug effects. Experiments with rats have demonstrated that the configuration of the enclosure in which they are injected influences the initial behavioral reactions to amphetamine and thus modifies the stereotypy. In experiments with cats pressing a lever to self-administer amphetamine, investigatory behavior at the lever-press operandi becomes incorporated as does the learned behavior response into the stereotypy. The behavioral patterns originally associated with amphetamine arousal eventually supersede the learned response component of the stereotypy. Finally, monkeys incorporate components of the initial behaviors associated with amphetamine administration into a wider range of stereotype patterns over months of chronic intoxication, and eventually the stereotypy may evolve into a specific dyskinesia involving movements of the original behavioral component.