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The role of convulsions in behavior
Author(s) -
Chance M. R. A.
Publication year - 2007
Publication title -
behavioral science
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.371
H-Index - 45
eISSN - 1099-1743
pISSN - 0005-7940
DOI - 10.1002/bs.3830020104
Subject(s) - convulsion , peromyscus , falling (accident) , psychology , repertoire , neuroscience , medicine , developmental psychology , biology , epilepsy , psychiatry , zoology , physics , acoustics
Are convulsions always indicative of pathology? There is evidence that sometimes convulsions may be instances of adaptive behavior, as, for example, those associated with the falling posture in mice. This form of convulsion seems to protect the falling animal from hemorrhages of concussion. Certain types of convulsions, such as audiogenic seizures in the Peromyscus, are of genetic origin so that strains of mice subject to such seizures can be bred. This leads to the conclusion that certain convulsions may be regarded as parts of the “behavioral repertoire” of an animal which in certain circumstances may become adaptive.