Figure 1

Study design, electrode location, and kindling-induced manic-like behaviors. Study design shown in (A) included the baseline phase for 7 days, followed by surgical implantation of stimulating electrode and recovery for 5 days before mania induction took place for 5 days. Each day, the animal was allowed an initial pre-kindling habituation period for 30 min followed by kindling phase consisting of seven consecutive trains of escalating volts (1 through 7 V) with 2-min rest interval between trains. Each train consisted of 10 pairs of stimulation (10 s) alternating with rest (30 s). The animal remained in the monitored cage for 30 min during the post-kindling period before it was returned back to home cage for 7 days (post-mania) before euthanasia and brain collection was performed. Locomotor activity counts and voluntary ethanol consumption were monitored continuously throughout the study period. Animals were assigned to lithium, valproate (VPA), or saline for 15 days. (B) An illustration of stimulating electrode tip locations plotted within the dorso-medial part of the LHA regions. AP coordinates were between −1.7 and −2.8 from bregma according to Paxinos Atlas. Manic-like behaviors were elicited in LHK rats. Significant increase in the frequency of sexual behavior (C), duration of grooming (D), the frequency of rearing (E), and feeding behaviors (F) were evident during the kindling process and persisted during the post-kindling interval by two-way ANOVA; *P < 0.05 by post hoc test; n = 10 to 12 per group. Data is expressed as mean ± SEM.