Effect of Monoamine Oxidase Inhibitors on the Behaviour of Rats in Hall's Open Field

ALTHOUGH numerous methods are available for assessing the potency of monoamine oxidase inhibitors in vivo, these almost invariably rely either on the direct measurement of tissue levels of catecholamine, serotonin or some metabolite thereof1, or on the ability of the inhibitor to potentiate or nullify the effects of some other drug such as 5-hydroxytryptophan, tryptamine or reserpine2. Direct behavioural effects of monoamine oxidase inhibitors at low doses are usually slight or detectable only by use of conditioned response techniques3.