Human serial learning: enhancement with arecholine and choline impairment with scopolamine

Science. 1978 Jul 21;201(4352):274-6. doi: 10.1126/science.351808.

Abstract

Arecholine (4 milligrams), a cholinergic agonist, and choline (10 grams), a precursor of acetylcholine, significantly enhanced serial learning in normal human subjects. The subjects received methscopolamine prior to both arecholine and placebo injections. Conversely, scopolamine (0.5 milligram), a cholinergic antagonist, impaired learning and this impairment was reversed by arecholine and choline and the impairment after scopolamine were inversely proportional to the subject's performance on placebo; that is, "poor" performers were more vulnerable to both the enhancing effect of cholinergic agonist and precursor and the impairment after cholinergic antagonist than "good" performers.

Publication types

  • Clinical Trial
  • Controlled Clinical Trial

MeSH terms

  • Acetylcholine / physiology
  • Adult
  • Arecoline / pharmacology*
  • Choline / pharmacology*
  • Clinical Trials as Topic
  • Female
  • Humans
  • Learning / drug effects*
  • Learning / physiology
  • Male
  • Memory / physiology
  • Receptors, Muscarinic / drug effects
  • Scopolamine / pharmacology*

Substances

  • Receptors, Muscarinic
  • Arecoline
  • Scopolamine
  • Choline
  • Acetylcholine