Right-but not left-paw use in female rats provides advantage in forced swim tests.

ABSTRACT

Left- and right-pawed adult female Wistar rats were subjected to forced swimming on two consecutive days. Compared to the right-pawed group, left- pawed rats displayed significantly increased immobility from the first to the second swim test and remained significantly more immobile in the second swim test. Both groups performed similarly in spatial learning in the Morris water maze suggesting that left- pawed rats are differentially and specifically susceptible to depressogenic treatment.