[Evaluation of the effect of certain pharmacologic agents on the activity of the "punishment" system].

The influence of serotonin-, cholin- and GABAergic drugs on the "punishment" system has been investigated on albino rats. Fluoxetine (20 mg/kg) and citalopram (20 mg/kg) prolonged the latency of escape (EL) from central aversive brain stimulation, while thresholds of pose shifts (PS) and movement initiation (MI) under stimulation of the same medial hypothalamus sites remained unchanged. Muscimol (2 mg/kg) and physostigmine (0,5 mg/kg) + methylatropine (1 mg/kg) increased both EL and threshold of PS and MI. In a conflict situation all the drugs either failed to produce a disinhibitory effect or even enhanced behaviour suppression; at the same time, however, the manifestations of emotional tension (emotional, reactivity, defecation) decreased. It is suggested that activation of serotonin-, cholin- and GABAergic processes decreases the functioning of both perceptive and emotional components of the punishment system.