Vitamin B6 Deficiency and the Initial Acquisition of Behavior

Abstract

Littermate rats paired by weaning weights were assigned at random to either a vitamin B6-deficient group or to one of two control groups. The vitamin B6-deficient group was fed our B6-deficient diet ad libitum. One control group was fed ad libitum this same basal diet with added pyridoxine. The second control group was fed the same diet as the first control group; however, their intake was restricted to an amount which maintained each control rat at the same weight as its deficient partner. In one study, deficient and control rats were compared in the acquisition of a lever press response to avoid an electric shock. In a second study deficient and control rats were compared in the time taken to learn to press a lever to obtain water after being deprived of water. Differences in vitamin B6 deficiency status were independently established by differences in growth, by xanthurenic acid excretion after a tryptophan load, and by gross observation of typical deficiency symptoms. In both studies the performance of the deficient animals was inferior (P < 0.05) to that of the control animals. No behavior differences were observed between the 2 control groups.