EFFECTS OF TRIAZOLAM ON DRINKING IN BABOONS WITH AND WITHOUT AN ORAL SELF-ADMINISTRATION HISTORY - A REINSTATEMENT PHENOMENON

In a test of the reinforcing efficacy of triazolam under an oral drug self-administration procedure, three baboons consumed higher volumes o f triazolam than of vehicle. Although these results suggested that tri azolam was serving as a reinforcer, the unconditioned effect of triazo lam itself on drinking remained unclear. Therefore, the effect of pret reatment with triazolam on consumption of a nondrug fluid was assessed in sessions that were otherwise identical to oral drug self-administr ation sessions. Following oral pretreatment with triazolam (0.6-19.2 m g total dose), there was a dose-dependent increase in drinking, sugges ting that triazolam increased fluid consumption per se, However, subse quent manipulations showed that following pretreatment with triazolam, there was no systematic change in tap water consumption from the regu lar drinking spout and that the dipsogenic effect of pretreatment with triazolam was not specific to a particular fluid; however, the effect was specific to prior experience with the oral self-administration pr ocedure. Thus, the dose-related increase in consumption from the drink ometer spout following triazolam pretreatment most likely is explained as the ''priming'' or ''reinstatement'' of an operant that previously had produced drug reinforcement, even though extinction (i.e., substi tution of the drug vehicle) was in effect.