ANALYSIS OF THE BEHAVIOR STRUCTURE OF DOPAMINE TRANSPORTER KNOCKOUT RATS

Relevance. Animals with knockout of the dopamine transporter gene (DAT–KO) reproduce the main symptoms of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Changes in DAT function in DAT-KO rats are a key mechanism in various pathological conditions associated with hyperdophaminergia. The aim of this study was to investigate the features of the manifestation of behavior patterns in response to novelty in free behavior in DAT-KO rats compared with heterozygous animals for the knockout gene (DAT-HET) and wild-type (WT) rats Methods. The experiments were conducted on 57 male Wistar rats DAT-KO, DAT-HET and WT. Rats with a knockout of the DAT gene were initially obtained from St. Petersburg State University, the Institute of Translational Biomedicine. Genotyping and behavior research in the open field were carried out. The analysis of behavior patterns was used: locomotion; sniffing; rearing; grooming; movement in place (changing the coordinates of the head and body within a conditional circle, the center of which is the relatively stationary hind limbs of the animal); peering into the hole; stand on the wall (rearing with an emphasis on the wall of an open field). Results. The DAT-KO rats showed marked hyperactivity compared to the WT and DAT-HET rats, they spent less time in the center of the field and moved in a repetitive circular pattern along the walls. The manifestations of investigatory activity in DAT-KO rats decreased in the number of peering into the hole and sniffings compared with WT and DAT-HET rats. The manifestations of anxiety in DAT-KO rats decreased in the number of acts of "grooming" and movements in place. In DAT-HET rats, there was an increase in locomotor and investigatory activity compared with WT. Conclusion. Based on the analysis of their own behavioral data and other studies, it is concluded that behavioral disinhibition is an overlapping feature of the elements of addictive behavior: impulsivity and compulsivity, which require independent study in DAT-KO animals. The presence of hyperdophaminergia, increased locomotions and investigations in DAT-HET rats with simultaneous cognitive impairment can predict addictive behavior disorders under conditions of gene-environment interaction.