[Effect of electric stimulation of the amygdala on formation and reproduction of conditioned reactions].

In experiments on immobilized cats in a model of a conditioned reflex with a short delay, sub-convulsive high frequency stimulation of the amygdala (60 c/s) did not produce any prolonged changes in the EEG, the skin-galvanic reaction or heart rate. Such stimulation, however, resulted in a more efficient functioning of memory mechanisms. In experiments with amygdala stimulation before learning, the number of pairings of conditioned and unconditioned stimuli necessary for the formation of a conditioned evoked potential (CEP) and a conditioned neurographic response (CNR) was significantly less than that without stimulation. In another series of experiments amygdala stimulation after learning facilitated the CEP and CNR reproduction. As a result of stimulation, CEP appeared in the structures whose combination corresponded to the maximal probability of CNR manifestation.