Differential pharmacological reactivity of aversion induced by stimulation of periaqueductal gray or mesencephalic locomotor region

Rats were trained to switch-off aversive electrical brain stimulations applied to the periaqueductal gray (PAG) or mesencephalic locomotor region (MLR) by pressing a bar (switch-off behavior). We investigated the effects of IP injections of the benzodiazepine (BZ) receptor inverse agonist FG 7142 (2.5, 5, 10 mg/kg) or BZ receptor agonist chlordiazepoxide (CDP: 5 mg/kg) on the switch-off latency, i.e., the time elapsed between the onset of the stimulation and its offset by a press of the bar. It was found that FG 7142 decreased, whereas CDP increased the mean switch-off latency for electrical stimulation of the PAG, which is interpreted as a potentiating effect of FG 7142 and a reducing effect of CDP on the electrically induced aversive state. By contrast, neither FG 7142 nor CDP were found to affect the mean switch-off latency for MLR stimulations. These results suggest a difference in the pharmacological sensitivity to BZ receptor ligands between aversive states elicited by electrical stimulation of the PAG or MLR.