Behavioral impairments related to cognitive dysfunction in the autoimmune New Zealand black mouse.

Compared the sensorimotor competence and performance of 7–20 mo old male New Zealand Black (NZB) mice and CFW mice on tasks requiring learning and memory, including passive shock avoidance, taste avoidance, tailflick, rotorod, locomotor activity, reflex evaluation, auditory startle response, shock-induced startle response, and active shock avoidance. Results demonstrate that NZBs showed pronounced deficits in performance of passive and active shock avoidance responses. These deficits could not be accounted for by the slight sensorimotor disadvantage of NZBs relative to CFWs. No difference between the 2 mouse strains was seen in passive avoidance behavior at 1.5 mo of age. It is concluded that NZBs display a behavioral deficit related to cognitive dysfunction and that autoimmune mechanisms may be involved in the etiology of this deficit. It is suggested that such behavioral disturbances produced by an autoimmune mechanism may have relevance for the neurological declines observed in aging since the incidence of autoimmune disorders increases markedly in old age. (12 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)