"Socially mediated reduction of isolation distress in rat pups is blocked by naltrexone but not by Ro 15-1788": Correction to Garden and Hofer.

Reports an error in "Socially mediated reduction of isolation distress in rat pups is blocked by naltrexone but not by Ro 15-1788" by Susan E. Carden and Myron A. Hofer (Behavioral Neuroscience, 1990[Jun], Vol 104[3], 457-463). On page 462, the last paragraph of the first column was incorrect. The corrected paragraph is provided in the erratum. (The following abstract of the original article appeared in record 1990-24769-001.) The presence of a single anesthetized littermate significantly reduced the rate of ultrasonic vocalization by 10-day-old pups isolated in a novel environment. Naltrexone (1.0 mg/kg) returned the vocalization rate to the level of pups tested alone and disrupted the maintenance of body contact between the test pup and a companion. This suggests that the companion exerts comforting effects through endogenous opioid mechanisms. Although chlordiazepoxide is as effective as morphine in the quieting of isolation distress, the benzodiazepine (BDZ) antagonist Ro 15-1788 (5, 10, or 20 mg/kg) was ineffective in blocking the comfort effect and facilitated quiet contact with the companion. In isolated pups, Ro 15-1788 caused a significant, but not a dose-related, decrease in vocalization, a possible indication of the displacement of an endogenous anxiogenic ligand at the BDZ receptor complex. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)