Effects of olfactory bulbectomy on phencyclidine (PCP) induced behavioural changes.

Phencyclidine (PCP), a psychotomimetic drug, interferes with glutamate transmission at the N-methyl-D-aspartate receptors in the central nervous system and precipitates psychotic reaction in humans which are similar to schizophrenia. The present study investigates whether surgical removal of the olfactory bulbs (OB) in rats could produce an effect or a deficit in the NMDA receptors in the olfactory bulbectomised animals following an acute challenge with a single high dose of PCP (10 mg/kg, i. p.) in comparison to Sham operated animals. PCP treatment produced an increase in home cage locomotor activity in both the OB and Sham animals over a 3 hour period. The increase in locomotor activity was slightly higher in Sham operated animals than the OB animals. As regards to stereotyped behaviours, PCP produced various effects on behaviours in the OB and Sham animals; grooming, rearing, and falling on the sides was suppressed and chewing totally disappeared, whereas circling and head rolling was increased in the two groups, even though the suppression and increase in behaviours did not reach significance in both groups. It can be concluded that olfactory bulbectomy did not alter the NMDA receptors activity.