Neuropsychiatric Symptoms of Epilepsy

8
A. Mazarati
Fig. 1.3 Behavioral patterns in the forced swimming test (FST) for depression. Sample snapshots
taken from pre-recorded video during FST. Time after the start of the test is indicated on each
image. Examples of active swimming, which reflects active escape strategies, are presented at
1 min 34 s and 1 min 37 s. Note the change in the rat’s position in the tank, which occurred during
the 3-s period, and the fuzziness of images due to the animal’s movement. Examples of immobility
when animals move only enough to avoid drowning are presented at 2 min 58 s and 3 min 04 s.
Note that the animal’s position in the tank did not change during 6 s of recording and that the body
is positioned vertically in the water [ 38 ] (Reprinted from Mazarati et al. [ 38 ], with permission from
Elsevier)
presented with the choice of two bottles, one filled with water and another with
sweet solution (e.g., low percent saccharin or sucrose), normal animals preferentially
consume the latter. “Anhedonic” animals show no drink preference, but consume
statistically equal volumes of water and saccharin. The presence of anhedonic
state is thus measured by the consumed saccharin (sucrose) to water ratio.
Among the factors regulating behavior in depression tests, ascending serotonergic
pathways (i.e., those emanating from raphe nuclei, and projecting to prefrontal
cortex [PFC] and hippocampus) play a critical role [ 41 , 42 ]. In turn, the
release of serotonin from raphe into target areas has complex regulatory