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The ontogeny of independent ingestion in mice: or, why won't infant mice feed?

Publication ,  Journal Article
Hall, WG; Browde, JA
Published in: Developmental psychobiology
May 1986

Unlike infant rats, which show deprivation-related ingestion in several different test situations, infant mice appeared to be relatively unwilling to feed independently of suckling until 12 days of age. We tested mouse pups that were deprived (of food, water, suckling, and maternal care) for 1, 7, or 24 hr in ingestive tests in which a milk diet was spread on the floor of their test container (Experiment 1). Pups at 3, 6, and 9 days of age consumed small amounts of the diet and showed little increase in intake when deprivation was increased. In contrast (and like rat pups of all ages), mouse pups 12 and 15 days of age actively ingested the diet and increased their intake with increased deprivation. Six-day-old mouse pups were similarly unwilling to ingest a 5% sucrose solution, though 12-day-old pups showed deprivation-related intake (Experiment 2). Cellular dehydration (produced by hypertonic saline injection), a potent stimulus for ingestion in infant rats, did not stimulate ingestion in mice younger than 12 days of age (Experiment 3). Finally, when ingestion was tested with diet infusions made through oral cannulas, mouse pups at 6 and 9 days of age showed only a slight increase in intake with increased deprivation. However, by 12 days of age, pups' ingestion increased markedly with deprivation (Experiment 4). Thus, mouse pups seem to be very different from rat pups with respect to the early existence of ingestive systems. The neural substrates for the ingestive responses that subserve independent ingestion are only minimally present in infant mice or are somehow inhibited.

Duke Scholars

Published In

Developmental psychobiology

DOI

EISSN

1098-2302

ISSN

0012-1630

Publication Date

May 1986

Volume

19

Issue

3

Start / End Page

211 / 222

Related Subject Headings

  • Sucking Behavior
  • Mice, Inbred C57BL
  • Mice
  • Feeding Behavior
  • Deglutition
  • Behavioral Science & Comparative Psychology
  • Animals, Newborn
  • Animals
  • Aging
  • 5202 Biological psychology
 

Citation

APA
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ICMJE
MLA
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Hall, W. G., & Browde, J. A. (1986). The ontogeny of independent ingestion in mice: or, why won't infant mice feed? Developmental Psychobiology, 19(3), 211–222. https://doi.org/10.1002/dev.420190307
Hall, W. G., and J. A. Browde. “The ontogeny of independent ingestion in mice: or, why won't infant mice feed?Developmental Psychobiology 19, no. 3 (May 1986): 211–22. https://doi.org/10.1002/dev.420190307.
Hall WG, Browde JA. The ontogeny of independent ingestion in mice: or, why won't infant mice feed? Developmental psychobiology. 1986 May;19(3):211–22.
Hall, W. G., and J. A. Browde. “The ontogeny of independent ingestion in mice: or, why won't infant mice feed?Developmental Psychobiology, vol. 19, no. 3, May 1986, pp. 211–22. Epmc, doi:10.1002/dev.420190307.
Hall WG, Browde JA. The ontogeny of independent ingestion in mice: or, why won't infant mice feed? Developmental psychobiology. 1986 May;19(3):211–222.
Journal cover image

Published In

Developmental psychobiology

DOI

EISSN

1098-2302

ISSN

0012-1630

Publication Date

May 1986

Volume

19

Issue

3

Start / End Page

211 / 222

Related Subject Headings

  • Sucking Behavior
  • Mice, Inbred C57BL
  • Mice
  • Feeding Behavior
  • Deglutition
  • Behavioral Science & Comparative Psychology
  • Animals, Newborn
  • Animals
  • Aging
  • 5202 Biological psychology