RESUMO
We revealed some relationships between the level of orientation and exploratory behavior, functional activity of the immune system, and structural and functional organization of the CNS in animals. Significant differences in brain morphology and expression of cytokine IL-1 beta, type I IL-1 receptor, and erythropoietin receptor genes in brain cells were detected in (CBA x C57Bl/6)F1 mice with different initial levels of orientation and exploratory behavior. Immunocompetent cells of mice with high and low levels of exploratory behavior differ by spontaneous and mitogen-induced proliferative activity. The formation of humoral and cellular immune response in these animals causes opposite changes in exploratory behavior and the type of these changes depends on the initial level of this behavioral reaction.