Effects of lateral hypothalamic lesions on consummatory behavior in developing rats.

Bilateral lesions aimed at the lateral hypothalami of preweanling rats result in decreased weight gain and eventual death within 5 days after the operation. Ten-day-old rats with unilateral damage to the lateral hypothalamus show retarded growth, food and water intake regulatory deficits, and altered sensitivity to quinine adulteration of the water for up to 60 days of age. These results suggest that at least one neural mechanism that regulates food and water intake matures early in the postnatal life of the rat.