John Libbey Eurotext




Magnesium deficiency reduces fear-induced conditional lick suppression in mice
Magnesium Research. Volume 20, Number 1, 58-65, March 2007, Original article
Free Article
Author(s) : Mark E Bardgett, Patrick J Schultheis, Ashley Muzny, Michael D Riddle, Jordan R Wagge
Summary : The consequences of broad-scale alterations in magnesium (Mg ²⁺) levels on learning and memory are poorly understood. We have recently demonstrated that adult male mice maintained on an Mg ²⁺-deficient diet exhibit reduced conditional freezing behavior. The purpose of the present study was to determine if the detrimental effect of Mg ²⁺ deficiency in mice extended to another measure of conditional fear, conditioned lick suppression (CLS), as well as to another form of learning, spatial learning in the swim maze task. Adult male C57Bl/6J mice were provided with a normal or Mg ²⁺-deficient diet and were trained and tested ten days later for conditional fear, using CLS and freezing as indicators of learning. Learning in the swim maze was tested in a separate cohort of mice during days 14-18 of diet exposure. Mg ²⁺-deficient mice showed reduced CLS as well as conditional freezing behavior in comparison to control mice. However, learning in the swim maze task was normal in Mg ²⁺-deficient mice. These studies indicate that the detrimental effects of Mg ²⁺ deficiency extend to other measures of conditional fear but not to all forms of learning.
Keywords : conditional fear, NMDA, glutamate, spatial learning, mice

Magnesium deficiency reduces fear-induced conditional lick suppression in mice