Tat-3L4F does not significantly affect spatial learning and memory

We recently found that the interfering peptide Tat-3L4F is able not only to disrupt the protein–protein interaction of PTEN (phosphatase and tensin homologue deleted on chromosome 10) with the serotonin 5-HT2C receptor in the rat ventral tegmental area (VTA) but also to suppress the conditioned place preference induced by cannabinoid and nicotine without significant effects on anxiety, feeding behavior and motor activity. It is unknown, however, whether Tat-3L4F affects learning and memory. Using a Morris water maze test, we show here that while the cannabinoid HU210 significantly inhibited the performance of spatial learning without significant effects on long-term memory, Tat-3L4F did not induce significant effects on the acquisition and retrieval of spatial memory. These results indicate that Tat-3L4F can suppress the rewarding effects of abused drugs without significant effects on learning and memory.