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Ecevitoglu A, Beard KR, Srynath S, Edelstein GA, Olivares-Garcia R, Martinez-Verdu A, Meka N, Correa M, Salamone JD. Pharmacological characterization of sex differences in the effects of dopaminergic drugs on effort-based decision making in rats. Psychopharmacology (Berl) 2024; 241:2033-2044. [PMID: 38842701 DOI: 10.1007/s00213-024-06615-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/18/2024] [Accepted: 05/12/2024] [Indexed: 06/07/2024]
Abstract
RATIONALE Motivational dysfunctions related to effort exertion are common in psychiatric disorders. Dopamine systems regulate exertion of effort and effort-based choice in humans and rodents. OBJECTIVES Previous rodent studies mainly employed male rats, and it is imperative to conduct studies in male and female rats. METHODS The present studies compared the effort-related effects of IP injections of the dopamine antagonists ecopipam and haloperidol, and the vesicular monoamine transport-2 inhibitor tetrabenazine (TBZ), in male and female rats using the fixed ratio 5/chow feeding choice task. RESULTS Ecopipam (0.05-0.2 mg/kg) and haloperidol (0.05-0.15 mg/kg) induced a low-effort bias, decreasing lever pressing and increasing chow intake in males and females in the same dose range. With lever pressing, there was a modest but significant dose x sex interaction after ecopipam injection, but there was no significant interaction after administration of haloperidol. In the first study with TBZ (0.25-1.0 mg/kg), there was a robust sex difference. TBZ shifted choice from lever pressing to chow intake in male rats, but was ineffective in females. In a second experiment, 2.0 mg/kg affected choice behavior in both males and females. TBZ increased accumbens c-Fos immunoreactivity in a sex-dependent manner, with males significantly increasing at 1.0 mg/kg, while females showed augmented immunoreactivity at 2.0 mg/kg. CONCLUSIONS The neural and behavioral effects of TBZ differed across sexes, emphasizing the importance of conducting studies in male and female rats. This research has implications for understanding the effort-related motivational dysfunctions seen in psychopathology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alev Ecevitoglu
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, USA
| | - Kathryn R Beard
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, USA
| | - Sonia Srynath
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, USA
| | - Gayle A Edelstein
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, USA
| | - Regulo Olivares-Garcia
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, USA
- Àrea de Psicobiologia, Universitat Jaume I, Campus de Riu Sec, Castelló, 12071, Spain
| | - Andrea Martinez-Verdu
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, USA
- Àrea de Psicobiologia, Universitat Jaume I, Campus de Riu Sec, Castelló, 12071, Spain
| | - Nicolette Meka
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, USA
| | - Merce Correa
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, USA
- Àrea de Psicobiologia, Universitat Jaume I, Campus de Riu Sec, Castelló, 12071, Spain
| | - John D Salamone
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, USA.
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Ecevitoglu A, Meka N, Rotolo RA, Edelstein GA, Srinath S, Beard KR, Carratala-Ros C, Presby RE, Cao J, Okorom A, Newman AH, Correa M, Salamone JD. Potential therapeutics for effort-related motivational dysfunction: assessing novel atypical dopamine transport inhibitors. Neuropsychopharmacology 2024; 49:1309-1317. [PMID: 38429498 PMCID: PMC11224370 DOI: 10.1038/s41386-024-01826-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/02/2023] [Revised: 01/28/2024] [Accepted: 02/05/2024] [Indexed: 03/03/2024]
Abstract
People with depression and other neuropsychiatric disorders can experience motivational dysfunctions such as fatigue and anergia, which involve reduced exertion of effort in goal-directed activity. To model effort-related motivational dysfunction, effort-based choice tasks can be used, in which rats can select between obtaining a preferred reinforcer by high exertion of effort vs. a low effort/less preferred option. Preclinical data indicate that dopamine transport (DAT) inhibitors can reverse pharmacologically-induced low-effort biases and increase selection of high-effort options in effort-based choice tasks. Although classical DAT blockers like cocaine can produce undesirable effects such as liability for misuse and psychotic reactions, not all DAT inhibitors have the same neurochemical profile. The current study characterized the effort-related effects of novel DAT inhibitors that are modafinil analogs and have a range of binding profiles and neurochemical actions (JJC8-088, JJC8-089, RDS3-094, and JJC8-091) by using two different effort-related choice behavior tasks in male Sprague-Dawley rats. JJC8-088, JJC8-089, and RDS3-094 significantly reversed the low-effort bias induced by the VMAT-2 inhibitor tetrabenazine, increasing selection of high-effort fixed ratio 5 lever pressing vs. chow intake. In addition, JJC8-089 reversed the effects of tetrabenazine in female rats. JJC8-088 and JJC8-089 also increased selection of high-effort progressive ratio responding in a choice task. However, JJC8-091 failed to produce these outcomes, potentially due to its unique pharmacological profile (i.e., binding to an occluded conformation of DAT). Assessment of a broad range of DAT inhibitors with different neurochemical characteristics may lead to the identification of compounds that are useful for treating motivational dysfunction in humans.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alev Ecevitoglu
- Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, 06269-1020, USA
| | - Nicolette Meka
- Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, 06269-1020, USA
| | - Renee A Rotolo
- Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, 06269-1020, USA
| | - Gayle A Edelstein
- Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, 06269-1020, USA
| | - Sonya Srinath
- Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, 06269-1020, USA
| | - Kathryn R Beard
- Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, 06269-1020, USA
| | - Carla Carratala-Ros
- Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, 06269-1020, USA
- Area de Psicobiología. Universitat Jaume I, Castelló, Spain
| | - Rose E Presby
- Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, 06269-1020, USA
| | - Jianjing Cao
- Medicinal Chemistry Section, NIDA-Intramural Research Program, Baltimore, MD, 21224, USA
| | - Amarachi Okorom
- Medicinal Chemistry Section, NIDA-Intramural Research Program, Baltimore, MD, 21224, USA
| | - Amy H Newman
- Medicinal Chemistry Section, NIDA-Intramural Research Program, Baltimore, MD, 21224, USA
| | - Mercè Correa
- Area de Psicobiología. Universitat Jaume I, Castelló, Spain
| | - John D Salamone
- Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, 06269-1020, USA.
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Koloski MF, Terry A, Lee N, Ramanathan DS. Methylphenidate, but not citalopram, decreases impulsive choice in rats performing a temporal discounting task. Front Psychiatry 2024; 15:1385502. [PMID: 38779546 PMCID: PMC11109432 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyt.2024.1385502] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/12/2024] [Accepted: 04/23/2024] [Indexed: 05/25/2024] Open
Abstract
Introduction Drugs targeting monoamine systems remain the most common treatment for disorders with impulse control impairments. There is a body of literature suggesting that drugs affecting serotonin reuptake and dopamine reuptake can modulate distinct aspects of impulsivity - though such tests are often performed using distinct behavioral tasks prohibiting easy comparisons. Methods Here, we directly compare pharmacologic agents that affect dopamine (methylphenidate) vs serotonin (citalopram) manipulations on choice impulsivity in a temporal discounting task where rats could choose between a small, immediate reward or a large reward delayed at either 2 or 10s. In control conditions, rats preferred the large reward at a small (2s) delay and discounted the large reward at a long (10s) delay. Results Methylphenidate, a dopamine transport inhibitor that blocks reuptake of dopamine, dose-dependently increased large reward preference in the long delay (10s) block. Citalopram, a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor, had no effect on temporal discounting behavior. Impulsive behavior on the temporal discounting task was at least partially mediated by the nucleus accumbens shell. Bilateral lesions to the nucleus accumbens shell reduced choice impulsivity during the long delay (10s) block. Following lesions, methylphenidate did not impact impulsivity. Discussion Our results suggest that striatal dopaminergic systems modulate choice impulsivity via actions within the nucleus accumbens shell, whereas serotonin systems may regulate different aspects of behavioral inhibition/impulsivity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Miranda F. Koloski
- Mental Health, VA San Diego Medical Center, San Diego, CA, United States
- Center of Excellence for Stress and Mental Health, VA San Diego Medical Center, San Diego, CA, United States
- Department of Psychiatry, University of California-San Diego, San Diego, CA, United States
| | - Alyssa Terry
- Mental Health, VA San Diego Medical Center, San Diego, CA, United States
| | - Noelle Lee
- Mental Health, VA San Diego Medical Center, San Diego, CA, United States
| | - Dhakshin S. Ramanathan
- Mental Health, VA San Diego Medical Center, San Diego, CA, United States
- Center of Excellence for Stress and Mental Health, VA San Diego Medical Center, San Diego, CA, United States
- Department of Psychiatry, University of California-San Diego, San Diego, CA, United States
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4
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Bergamini G, Durkin S, Steiner MA. Selective orexin 1 receptor antagonism does not affect effort-based responding for sucrose reward in rats. J Psychopharmacol 2024; 38:305-308. [PMID: 38327032 DOI: 10.1177/02698811241229523] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/09/2024]
Abstract
In rodents, orexin neuropeptides regulate motivation and reward-seeking via orexin 1 receptor (OX1R) signaling in the mesolimbic dopaminergic system. This role is clearly established for rewards inherent to drugs of abuse but less so for natural rewards. Reported effects of the selective OX1R antagonist (SO1RA) SB-334867 on motivation for palatable food are ambiguous. In our experimental conditions neither SB-334867, nor two additional, structurally different SO1RAs, ACT-335827 and the clinical development candidate nivasorexant, affected effort-based responding for sucrose in rats. The positive control lisdexamfetamine, approved for psychiatric disorders associated with altered reward sensitivity such as binge eating disorder, increased effort-based responding.
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Affiliation(s)
- Giorgio Bergamini
- CNS Pharmacology, Idorsia Pharmaceuticals Ltd, Allschwil, Switzerland
| | - Sean Durkin
- CNS Pharmacology, Idorsia Pharmaceuticals Ltd, Allschwil, Switzerland
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Hori Y, Mimura K, Nagai Y, Hori Y, Kumata K, Zhang MR, Suhara T, Higuchi M, Minamimoto T. Reduced serotonergic transmission alters sensitivity to cost and reward via 5-HT1A and 5-HT1B receptors in monkeys. PLoS Biol 2024; 22:e3002445. [PMID: 38163325 PMCID: PMC10758260 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pbio.3002445] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/23/2023] [Accepted: 11/22/2023] [Indexed: 01/03/2024] Open
Abstract
Serotonin (5-HT) deficiency is a core biological pathology underlying depression and other psychiatric disorders whose key symptoms include decreased motivation. However, the exact role of 5-HT in motivation remains controversial and elusive. Here, we pharmacologically manipulated the 5-HT system in macaque monkeys and quantified the effects on motivation for goal-directed actions in terms of incentives and costs. Reversible inhibition of 5-HT synthesis increased errors and reaction times on goal-directed tasks, indicating reduced motivation. Analysis found incentive-dependent and cost-dependent components of this reduction. To identify the receptor subtypes that mediate cost and incentive, we systemically administered antagonists specific to 4 major 5-HT receptor subtypes: 5-HT1A, 5-HT1B, 5-HT2A, and 5-HT4. Positron emission tomography (PET) visualized the unique distribution of each subtype in limbic brain regions and determined the systemic dosage for antagonists that would achieve approximately 30% occupancy. Only blockade of 5-HT1A decreased motivation through changes in both expected cost and incentive; sensitivity to future workload and time delay to reward increased (cost) and reward value decreased (incentive). Blocking the 5-HT1B receptor also reduced motivation through decreased incentive, although it did not affect expected cost. These results suggest that 5-HT deficiency disrupts 2 processes, the subjective valuation of costs and rewards, via 5-HT1A and 5-HT1B receptors, thus leading to reduced motivation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yukiko Hori
- Department of Functional Brain Imaging, National Institutes for Quantum Science and Technology, Chiba, Japan
| | - Koki Mimura
- Department of Functional Brain Imaging, National Institutes for Quantum Science and Technology, Chiba, Japan
- Research Center for Medical and Health Data Science, The Institute of Statistical Mathematics, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Yuji Nagai
- Department of Functional Brain Imaging, National Institutes for Quantum Science and Technology, Chiba, Japan
| | - Yuki Hori
- Department of Functional Brain Imaging, National Institutes for Quantum Science and Technology, Chiba, Japan
| | - Katsushi Kumata
- Department of Advanced Nuclear Medicine Sciences, National Institutes for Quantum Science and Technology, Chiba, Japan
| | - Ming-Rong Zhang
- Department of Advanced Nuclear Medicine Sciences, National Institutes for Quantum Science and Technology, Chiba, Japan
| | - Tetsuya Suhara
- Department of Functional Brain Imaging, National Institutes for Quantum Science and Technology, Chiba, Japan
| | - Makoto Higuchi
- Department of Functional Brain Imaging, National Institutes for Quantum Science and Technology, Chiba, Japan
| | - Takafumi Minamimoto
- Department of Functional Brain Imaging, National Institutes for Quantum Science and Technology, Chiba, Japan
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Chong TTJ, Fortunato E, Bellgrove MA. Amphetamines Improve the Motivation to Invest Effort in Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder. J Neurosci 2023; 43:6898-6908. [PMID: 37666665 PMCID: PMC10573750 DOI: 10.1523/jneurosci.0982-23.2023] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/28/2023] [Revised: 07/26/2023] [Accepted: 07/31/2023] [Indexed: 09/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Prevailing frameworks propose that a key feature of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is lower motivation. An important component of motivation is the willingness to engage in cognitively or physically effortful behavior. However, the degree to which effort sensitivity is impaired in ADHD has rarely been tested, and the efficacy of stimulant medication in ameliorating any such impairments is unclear. Here, we tested 20 individuals with ADHD (11 males, 9 females) who were managed with amphetamine-based medication (dexamfetamine, lisdexamfetamine), and 24 controls (8 males, 16 females). Individuals with ADHD were tested over two counterbalanced sessions, ON and OFF their usual amphetamine-based medication. In each session, participants performed an effort-based decision-making task, in which they were required to choose how much cognitive or physical effort they were willing to engage in return for reward. Our results revealed three main findings. First, individuals with ADHD had lower motivation relative to controls to invest effort in both the cognitive and physical domains. Second, amphetamine increased motivation uniformly across both domains. Finally, the net effect of amphetamine treatment was to mostly restore motivation across both domains of effort relative to healthy controls. These data provide clear evidence for a heightened sensitivity to both cognitive and physical effort in ADHD, and reveal the efficacy of amphetamine-based drugs in restoring effort sensitivity to levels similar to controls. These findings confirm the existence of reduced motivational drive in ADHD, and more broadly provide direct causal evidence for a domain-general role of catecholamines in motivating effortful behavior.SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT A core feature of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is thought to be a heightened aversion to effort. Surprisingly, however, the degree to which effort sensitivity is impaired in ADHD has rarely been tested. More broadly, the relative efficacy of catecholamines in motivating the investment of cognitive and physical effort is unclear. We tested 20 individuals with ADHD ON and OFF amphetamines, and compared their behavior on an effort-based decision-making task to 24 controls. When tested OFF medication, the ADHD group was less cognitively and physically motivated than controls. However, amphetamines led to a comparable increase in motivation across both domains. This demonstrates the efficacy of catecholamines in facilitating domain-general effort, and highlights the broader potential of such drugs to treat disorders of motivation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Trevor T-J Chong
- Turner Institute for Brain and Mental Health, School of Psychological Sciences, Monash University, Clayton, Victoria 3800, Australia
- Department of Neurology, Alfred Health, Melbourne, Victoria 3004, Australia
- Department of Clinical Neurosciences, St Vincent's Hospital, Melbourne, Victoria 3065, Australia
| | - Erika Fortunato
- Turner Institute for Brain and Mental Health, School of Psychological Sciences, Monash University, Clayton, Victoria 3800, Australia
| | - Mark A Bellgrove
- Turner Institute for Brain and Mental Health, School of Psychological Sciences, Monash University, Clayton, Victoria 3800, Australia
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Spark DL, Vermeulen MH, de la Fuente Gonzalez RA, Hatzipantelis CJ, Rueda P, Sepehrizadeh T, De Veer M, Mannoury la Cour C, Fornito A, Langiu M, Stewart GD, Nithianantharajah J, Langmead CJ. Gpr88 Deletion Impacts Motivational Control Without Overt Disruptions to Striatal Dopamine. BIOLOGICAL PSYCHIATRY GLOBAL OPEN SCIENCE 2023; 3:1053-1061. [PMID: 37881541 PMCID: PMC10593871 DOI: 10.1016/j.bpsgos.2022.10.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/16/2022] [Revised: 10/17/2022] [Accepted: 10/19/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Disrupted motivational control is a common-but poorly treated-feature of psychiatric disorders, arising via aberrant mesolimbic dopaminergic signaling. GPR88 is an orphan G protein-coupled receptor that is highly expressed in the striatum and therefore well placed to modulate disrupted signaling. While the phenotype of Gpr88 knockout mice suggests a role in motivational pathways, it is unclear whether GPR88 is involved in reward valuation and/or effort-based decision making in a sex-dependent manner and whether this involves altered dopamine function. Methods In male and female Gpr88 knockout mice, we used touchscreen-based progressive ratio, with and without reward devaluation, and effort-related choice tasks to assess motivation and cost/benefit decision making, respectively. To explore whether these motivational behaviors were related to alterations in the striatal dopamine system, we quantified expression of dopamine-related genes and/or proteins and used [18F]DOPA positron emission tomography and GTPγ[35S] binding to assess presynaptic and postsynaptic dopamine function, respectively. Results We showed that male and female Gpr88 knockout mice displayed greater motivational drive than wild-type mice, which was maintained following reward devaluation. Furthermore, we showed that cost/benefit decision making was impaired in male, but not female, Gpr88 knockout mice. Surprisingly, we found that Gpr88 deletion had no effect on striatal dopamine by any of the measures assessed. Conclusions Our results highlight that GPR88 regulates motivational control but that disruption of such behaviors following Gpr88 deletion occurs independently of gross perturbations to striatal dopamine at a gene, protein, or functional level. This work provides further insights into GPR88 as a drug target for motivational disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daisy L. Spark
- Drug Discovery Biology, Monash Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Monash University, Parkville, Victoria, Australia
- Neuroscience & Mental Health Therapeutic Program Area, Monash Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Monash University, Parkville, Victoria, Australia
- Neuromedicines Discovery Centre, Monash Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Monash University, Parkville, Victoria, Australia
| | - Michela H. Vermeulen
- Drug Discovery Biology, Monash Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Monash University, Parkville, Victoria, Australia
| | - Rocío A. de la Fuente Gonzalez
- Drug Discovery Biology, Monash Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Monash University, Parkville, Victoria, Australia
- Neuroscience & Mental Health Therapeutic Program Area, Monash Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Monash University, Parkville, Victoria, Australia
- Neuromedicines Discovery Centre, Monash Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Monash University, Parkville, Victoria, Australia
| | | | - Patricia Rueda
- Drug Discovery Biology, Monash Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Monash University, Parkville, Victoria, Australia
| | - Tara Sepehrizadeh
- Monash Biomedical Imaging, Monash University, Clayton, Victoria, Australia
| | - Michael De Veer
- Monash Biomedical Imaging, Monash University, Clayton, Victoria, Australia
| | | | - Alex Fornito
- Turner Institute for Brain and Mental Health, Monash Biomedical Imaging, and School of Psychological Sciences, Monash University, Clayton, Victoria, Australia
| | - Monica Langiu
- Drug Discovery Biology, Monash Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Monash University, Parkville, Victoria, Australia
- Neuroscience & Mental Health Therapeutic Program Area, Monash Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Monash University, Parkville, Victoria, Australia
| | - Gregory D. Stewart
- Drug Discovery Biology, Monash Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Monash University, Parkville, Victoria, Australia
- Neuroscience & Mental Health Therapeutic Program Area, Monash Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Monash University, Parkville, Victoria, Australia
- Neuromedicines Discovery Centre, Monash Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Monash University, Parkville, Victoria, Australia
| | - Jess Nithianantharajah
- Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, University of Melbourne, Parkville, Victoria, Australia
| | - Christopher J. Langmead
- Drug Discovery Biology, Monash Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Monash University, Parkville, Victoria, Australia
- Neuroscience & Mental Health Therapeutic Program Area, Monash Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Monash University, Parkville, Victoria, Australia
- Neuromedicines Discovery Centre, Monash Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Monash University, Parkville, Victoria, Australia
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Ecevitoglu A, Edelstein GA, Presby RE, Rotolo RA, Yang JH, Quiles T, Okifo K, Conrad RT, Kovach A, Correa M, Salamone JD. Effects of the atypical antipsychotic and D3/D2 dopamine partial agonist cariprazine on effort-based choice behavior: implications for modeling avolition. Psychopharmacology (Berl) 2023; 240:1747-1757. [PMID: 37358806 DOI: 10.1007/s00213-023-06405-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/01/2023] [Accepted: 06/09/2023] [Indexed: 06/27/2023]
Abstract
RATIONALE Cariprazine is an atypical antipsychotic that acts as a D3/D2 receptor partial agonist. In addition to treating positive symptoms of schizophrenia, cariprazine may have utility for treating negative symptoms. Rodent studies have focused on the effects of cariprazine on cognitive functions and behaviors thought to be related to anhedonia. Avolition, which is characterized by reduced initiation and persistence of goal-directed behavior, is another important negative symptom. OBJECTIVES Effort-related choice tasks have been used as animal models of avolition. In these studies, cariprazine was assessed for its effects on effort-based choice in both rats and mice. Previous work has shown that D2 antagonists such as haloperidol and eticlopride produce a low-effort bias in rodents tested on effort-based choice tasks. RESULTS Low doses of cariprazine produced a low-effort bias in rats tested on the fixed ratio 5/chow feeding choice task, decreasing lever pressing for high carbohydrate pellets but increasing chow intake. Cariprazine did not alter preference or intake of these foods in free-feeding tests. The effort-related effects of cariprazine were reversed by co-administration of the adenosine A2A antagonist istradefylline, and cariprazine failed to reverse the effort-related effects of the dopamine-depleting agent tetrabenazine. In mouse touchscreen choice tests, low doses of cariprazine also produced a low-effort bias, shifting behavior away from panel pressing. CONCLUSIONS These results demonstrate that with these rodent models of avolition, cariprazine appears to act like a D2-family antagonist even at very low doses. Furthermore, the pharmacological regulation of avolition may differ from that of other negative symptoms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alev Ecevitoglu
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, USA
| | - Gayle A Edelstein
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, USA
| | - Rose E Presby
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, USA
- Scintillon Institute, San Diego, CA, USA
| | - Renee A Rotolo
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, USA
- Sage Therapeutics, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Jen-Hau Yang
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, USA
- Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT, USA
| | - Taina Quiles
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, USA
| | - Kevin Okifo
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, USA
| | - Ryan T Conrad
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, USA
| | - Ashley Kovach
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, USA
| | - Merce Correa
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, USA
- Àrea de Psicobiologia, Universitat Jaume I, Campus de Riu Sec, 12071, Castellón de La Plana, Castelló, Spain
| | - John D Salamone
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, USA.
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Hervig MES, Toschi C, Petersen A, Vangkilde S, Gether U, Robbins TW. Theory of visual attention (TVA) applied to rats performing the 5-choice serial reaction time task: differential effects of dopaminergic and noradrenergic manipulations. Psychopharmacology (Berl) 2023; 240:41-58. [PMID: 36434307 PMCID: PMC9816296 DOI: 10.1007/s00213-022-06269-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/20/2021] [Accepted: 10/21/2022] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Abstract
RATIONALE Attention is compromised in many psychiatric disorders, including attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). While dopamine and noradrenaline systems have been implicated in ADHD, their exact role in attentional processing is yet unknown. OBJECTIVES We applied the theory of visual attention (TVA) model, adapted from human research, to the rat 5-choice serial reaction time task (5CSRTT) to investigate catecholaminergic modulation of visual attentional processing in healthy subjects of high- and low-attention phenotypes. METHODS Rats trained on the standard 5CSRTT and tested with variable stimulus durations were treated systemically with noradrenergic and/or dopaminergic agents (atomoxetine, methylphenidate, amphetamine, phenylephrine and atipamezole). TVA modelling was applied to estimate visual processing speed for correct and incorrect visual perceptual categorisations, independent of motor reaction times, as measures of attentional capacity. RESULTS Atomoxetine and phenylephrine decreased response frequencies, including premature responses, increased omissions and slowed responding. In contrast, methylphenidate, amphetamine and atipamezole sped up responding and increased premature responses. Visual processing speed was also affected differentially. Atomoxetine and phenylephrine slowed, whereas methylphenidate and atipamezole sped up, visual processing, both for correct and incorrect categorisations. Amphetamine selectively improved visual processing for correct, though not incorrect, responses in high-attention rats only, possibly reflecting improved attention. CONCLUSIONS These data indicate that the application of TVA to the 5CSRTT provides an enhanced sensitivity to capturing attentional effects. Unexpectedly, we found overall slowing effects, including impaired visual processing, following drugs either increasing extracellular noradrenaline (atomoxetine) or activating the α1-adrenoceptor (phenylephrine), while also ameliorating premature responses (impulsivity). In contrast, amphetamine had potential pro-attentional effects by enhancing visual processing, probably due to central dopamine upregulation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mona El-Sayed Hervig
- Department of Psychology and Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience Institute, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK. .,Department of Neuroscience, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark.
| | - Chiara Toschi
- Department of Psychology and Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience Institute, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | - Anders Petersen
- Department of Psychology, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Signe Vangkilde
- Department of Psychology, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Ulrik Gether
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Trevor W. Robbins
- Department of Psychology and Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience Institute, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
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Presby RE, Rotolo RA, Katz S, Sarwat Z, Correa M, Salamone JD. Lipopolysaccharide-induced changes in effort-related motivational function: Interactions with 2-deoxyglucose. Physiol Behav 2023; 258:114005. [PMID: 36283457 DOI: 10.1016/j.physbeh.2022.114005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/19/2022] [Revised: 09/25/2022] [Accepted: 10/21/2022] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
Abstract
Inflammation is linked to motivational deficits seen in depression and other disorders. Lipopolysaccharide (LPS) induces an inflammatory response and impairs motivated behavior in humans and rodents. It has been suggested that inflammation can shift metabolic needs to functions that warrant more response to the perceived threat (e.g., fighting infection), therefore altering aspects of motivation. Animal models have been developed to assess alterations in motivated behavior by giving the animal the option to work (i.e., lever press) for a highly palatable food reward vs. approaching and consuming a freely available, albeit less preferred, food. This model was used to determine if administration of 2-deoxy-D-glucose (2DG), a substance that inhibits glucose uptake and glycolysis, could reverse the motivational deficits induced by LPS in rats. A food preference/intake task was also conducted to see if LPS affected intake of the highly palatable vs. less palatable foods when both are freely available. It was hypothesized that 2-DG would reverse the motivational deficits caused by LPS and there would be no effect on food preference/intake of the highly palatable food. Results showed that 2-DG significantly reversed LPS effects at the lowest dose, while methylphenidate did not. The food intake/preference tests showed that LPS significantly decreased food intake of both foods but did not alter preference for the highly palatable food compared to vehicle. These results suggest that in addition to having effects on exertion of effort during instrumental behavior, LPS also has direct effects on primary food motivation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rose E Presby
- Behavioral Neuroscience Division, Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, 06269-1020, United States; Sage Thereapeutics, Boston, MA, United States
| | - Renee A Rotolo
- Behavioral Neuroscience Division, Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, 06269-1020, United States
| | - Sydney Katz
- Behavioral Neuroscience Division, Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, 06269-1020, United States
| | - Zoha Sarwat
- Behavioral Neuroscience Division, Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, 06269-1020, United States
| | - Merce Correa
- Behavioral Neuroscience Division, Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, 06269-1020, United States; Area de Psicobiologia, Universitat Jaume I, Castelló, Spain
| | - John D Salamone
- Behavioral Neuroscience Division, Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, 06269-1020, United States.
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Critical review of RDoC approaches to the study of motivation with animal models: effort valuation/willingness to work. Emerg Top Life Sci 2022; 6:515-528. [PMID: 36218385 DOI: 10.1042/etls20220008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/22/2022] [Revised: 09/17/2022] [Accepted: 09/21/2022] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Abstract
The NIMH research domain criteria (RDoC) approach was instigated to refocus mental health research on the neural circuits that mediate psychological functions, with the idea that this would foster an understanding of the neural basis of specific psychiatric dysfunctions (i.e. 'symptoms and circuits') and ultimately facilitate treatment. As a general idea, this attempt to go beyond traditional diagnostic categories and focus on neural circuit dysfunctions related to specific symptoms spanning multiple disorders has many advantages. For example, motivational dysfunctions are present in multiple disorders, including depression, schizophrenia, Parkinson's disease, and other conditions. A critical aspect of motivation is effort valuation/willingness to work, and several clinical studies have identified alterations in effort-based decision making in various patient groups. In parallel, formal animal models focusing on the exertion of effort and effort-based decision making have been developed. This paper reviews the literature on models of effort-based motivational function in the context of a discussion of the RDoC approach, with an emphasis on the dissociable nature of distinct aspects of motivation. For example, conditions associated with depression and schizophrenia blunt the selection of high-effort activities as measured by several tasks in animal models (e.g. lever pressing, barrier climbing, wheel running). Nevertheless, these manipulations also leave fundamental aspects of hedonic reactivity, food motivation, and reinforcement intact. This pattern of effects demonstrates that the general emphasis of the RDoC on the specificity of the neural circuits mediating behavioral pathologies, and the dissociative nature of these dysfunctions, is a valid concept. Nevertheless, the specific placement of effort-related processes as simply a 'sub-construct' of 'reward processing' is empirically and conceptually problematic. Thus, while the RDoC is an excellent general framework for new ways to approach research and therapeutics, it still needs further refinement.
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Treadway MT, Salamone JD. Vigor, Effort-Related Aspects of Motivation and Anhedonia. Curr Top Behav Neurosci 2022; 58:325-353. [PMID: 35505057 DOI: 10.1007/7854_2022_355] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/06/2023]
Abstract
In this chapter we provide an overview of the pharmacological and circuit mechanisms that determine the willingness to expend effort in pursuit of rewards. A particular focus will be on the role of the mesolimbic dopamine system, as well the contributing roles of limbic and cortical brains areas involved in the evaluation, selection, and invigoration of goal-directed actions. We begin with a review of preclinical studies, which have provided key insights into the brain systems that are necessary and sufficient for effort-based decision-making and have characterized novel compounds that enhance selection of high-effort activities. Next, we summarize translational studies identifying and expanding this circuitry in humans. Finally, we discuss the relevance of this work for understanding common motivational impairments as part of the broader anhedonia symptom domain associated with mental illness, and the identification of new treatment targets within this circuitry to improve motivation and effort-expenditure.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - John D Salamone
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, USA
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13
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Ren N, Carratala-Ros C, Ecevitoglu A, Rotolo RA, Edelstein GA, Presby RE, Stevenson IH, Chrobak JJ, Salamone JD. Effects of the dopamine depleting agent tetrabenazine on detailed temporal parameters of effort-related choice responding. J Exp Anal Behav 2022; 117:331-345. [PMID: 35344599 PMCID: PMC9531143 DOI: 10.1002/jeab.754] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/15/2021] [Revised: 01/29/2022] [Accepted: 01/31/2022] [Indexed: 11/11/2022]
Abstract
The dopamine-depleting agent tetrabenazine alters effort-based choice, suppressing food-reinforced behaviors with high response requirements, while increasing selection of low-cost options. In the present experiments, rats were tested on a concurrent fixed ratio 5/chow feeding choice task, in which high-carbohydrate Bio-serv pellets reinforced lever pressing and lab chow was concurrently available. Detailed timing of lever pressing was monitored with an event recording system, and the temporal characteristics of operant behavior seen after 1.0 mg/kg tetrabenazine or vehicle injections were analyzed. Tetrabenazine shifted choice, decreasing lever pressing but increasing chow intake. There was a small effect on the interresponse-time distribution within ratios, but marked increases in the total duration of pauses in responding. The postreinforcement-pause (PRP) distribution was bimodal, but tetrabenazine did not increase the duration of PRPs. Tetrabenazine increased time feeding and duration and number of feeding bouts, but did not affect feeding rate or total time spent lever pressing for pellets and consuming chow. Thus, TBZ appears to predominantly affect the relative allocation of lever pressing versus chow, with little alteration in consummatory motor acts involved in chow intake. Tetrabenazine is used to model motivational symptoms in psychopathology, and these effects in rats could have implications for psychiatric research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Naxin Ren
- Dept. of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT
| | - Carla Carratala-Ros
- Dept. of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT
- Area de Psicobiologia, Universitat Jaume I, Castelló, Spain
| | - Alev Ecevitoglu
- Dept. of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT
| | - Renee A. Rotolo
- Dept. of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT
| | | | - Rose E. Presby
- Dept. of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT
| | - Ian H. Stevenson
- Dept. of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT
| | - James J. Chrobak
- Dept. of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT
| | - John D. Salamone
- Dept. of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT
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14
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Salamone J, Ecevitoglu A, Carratala-Ros C, Presby R, Edelstein G, Fleeher R, Rotolo R, Meka N, Srinath S, Masthay JC, Correa M. Complexities and Paradoxes in Understanding the Role of Dopamine in Incentive Motivation and Instrumental Action: Exertion of Effort vs. Anhedonia. Brain Res Bull 2022; 182:57-66. [DOI: 10.1016/j.brainresbull.2022.01.019] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/04/2021] [Revised: 01/11/2022] [Accepted: 01/29/2022] [Indexed: 02/08/2023]
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15
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The effects of lisdexamfetamine dimesylate on eating behaviour and homeostatic, reward and cognitive processes in women with binge-eating symptoms: an experimental medicine study. Transl Psychiatry 2022; 12:9. [PMID: 35013131 PMCID: PMC8744047 DOI: 10.1038/s41398-021-01770-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/06/2021] [Revised: 11/20/2021] [Accepted: 11/25/2021] [Indexed: 02/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Lisdexamfetamine dimesylate (LDX) is the only drug currently approved by the FDA for the treatment of Binge-Eating Disorder (BED), but little is known about the behavioural mechanisms that underpin the efficacy of LDX in treating BED. We examined the behavioural and neural effects of an acute dose of LDX (50 mg) in 22 women with binge-eating symptomatology using a randomised, crossover, double-blind, placebo-controlled experimental medicine design. LDX reduced self-reported appetite ratings and intake of both a pasta meal and a palatable cookie snack. LDX also decreased the eating rate of pasta but not of cookies and reduced self-reported liking ratings for pasta at the end of the meal. When viewing food pictures during an fMRI scan, LDX reduced activity bilaterally in the thalamus. LDX enhanced sustained attention and reduced impulsive responding in a continuous performance task but had no effect on emotional bias or working memory. These results suggest the observed effects of LDX on food intake (and by implication the efficacy of LDX in treating BED) may be related to the actions of the drug to enhance satiety, reduce food-related reward responding when full and/or increase cognitive control. Novel pharmacotherapies for BED might be most effective if they have a broad spectrum of effects on appetite, reward and cognition.
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16
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McLauchlan DJ, Lancaster T, Craufurd D, Linden DEJ, Rosser AE. Different depression: motivational anhedonia governs antidepressant efficacy in Huntington's disease. Brain Commun 2022; 4:fcac278. [PMID: 36440100 PMCID: PMC9683390 DOI: 10.1093/braincomms/fcac278] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/06/2022] [Revised: 04/13/2022] [Accepted: 11/04/2022] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
Depression is more common in neurodegenerative diseases such as Huntington's disease than the general population. Antidepressant efficacy is well-established for depression within the general population: a recent meta-analysis showed serotonin norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors, tricyclic antidepressants and mirtazapine outperformed other antidepressants. Despite the severe morbidity, antidepressant choice in Huntington's disease is based on Class IV evidence. We used complementary approaches to determine treatment choice for depression in Huntington's disease: propensity score analyses of antidepressant treatment outcome using the ENROLL-HD data set, and a dissection of the cognitive mechanisms underlying depression in Huntington's disease using a cognitive battery based on the Research Domain Criteria for Depression. Study 1 included ENROLL-HD 5486 gene-positive adult patients started on an antidepressant medication for depression. Our outcome measures were depression (Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale or Problem Behaviours Assessment 'Depressed Mood' item) at first follow-up (primary outcome) and all follow-ups (secondary outcome). The intervention was antidepressant class. We used Svyglm&Twang in R to perform propensity scoring, using known variables (disease progression, medical comorbidity, psychiatric morbidity, sedatives, number of antidepressants, demographics and antidepressant contraindications) to determine the probability of receiving different antidepressants (propensity score) and then included the propensity score in a model of treatment efficacy. Study 2 recruited 51 gene-positive adult patients and 26 controls from the South Wales Huntington's Disease Management Service. Participants completed a motor assessment, in addition to measures of depression and apathy, followed by tasks measuring consummatory anhedonia, motivational anhedonia, learning from reward and punishment and reaction to negative outcome. We used generalised linear models to determine the association between task performance and depression scores. Study 1 showed selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors outperformed serotonin norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors on the primary outcome (P = 0.048), whilst both selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (P = 0.00069) and bupropion (P = 0.0045) were superior to serotonin norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors on the secondary outcome. Study 2 demonstrated an association between depression score and effort for reward that was not explained by apathy. No other mechanisms were associated with depression score. We found that selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors and bupropion outperform serotonin norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors at alleviating depression in Huntington's disease. Moreover, motivational anhedonia appears the most significant mechanism underlying depression in Huntington's disease. Bupropion is improves motivational anhedonia and has a synergistic effect with selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors. This work provides the first large-scale, objective evidence to determine treatment choice for depression in Huntington's disease, and provides a model for determining antidepressant efficacy in other neurodegenerative diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Duncan James McLauchlan
- Division of Psychological Medicine and Clinical Neurosciences, Cardiff University, Cardiff CF24 4HQ, UK.,Department of Neurology, Morriston Hospital, Swansea Bay University Health Board, Swansea SA6 6NL, UK
| | - Thomas Lancaster
- Division of Psychological Medicine and Clinical Neurosciences, Cardiff University, Cardiff CF24 4HQ, UK.,Cardiff University Brain Research Imaging Center, Cardiff University, Cardiff CF24 4HQ, UK.,Department of Psychology, University of Bath, Bath BA2 7AY, UK
| | - David Craufurd
- Manchester Center for Genomic Medicine, Division of Evolution and Genomic Sciences, School of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health, University of Manchester, Manchester Academic Health Science Center, Manchester M13 9PL, UK.,St. Mary's Hospital, Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust, Manchester Academic Health Science Center, Manchester M13 9WL, UK
| | - David E J Linden
- Division of Psychological Medicine and Clinical Neurosciences, Cardiff University, Cardiff CF24 4HQ, UK.,Cardiff University Brain Research Imaging Center, Cardiff University, Cardiff CF24 4HQ, UK.,Department of Psychology, University of Bath, Bath BA2 7AY, UK.,School for Mental Health and Neuroscience, Fac. Health, Medicine and Life Sciences, Maastricht University, Maastricht, Netherlands
| | - Anne E Rosser
- Division of Psychological Medicine and Clinical Neurosciences, Cardiff University, Cardiff CF24 4HQ, UK.,Department of Neurology, Morriston Hospital, Swansea Bay University Health Board, Swansea SA6 6NL, UK.,School of Biosciences, Cardiff University, Cardiff CF10 3AX, UK
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17
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Increased elasticity of sucrose demand during hyperdopaminergic states in rats. Psychopharmacology (Berl) 2022; 239:773-794. [PMID: 35102422 PMCID: PMC8891210 DOI: 10.1007/s00213-022-06068-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/19/2020] [Accepted: 01/17/2022] [Indexed: 10/29/2022]
Abstract
RATIONALE Deficits in cost-benefit decision-making are a core feature of several psychiatric disorders, including substance addiction, eating disorders and bipolar disorder. Mesocorticolimbic dopamine signalling has been implicated in various processes related to cognition and reward, but its precise role in reward valuation and cost-benefit trade-off decisions remains incompletely understood. OBJECTIVES We assessed the role of mesocorticolimbic dopamine signalling in the relationship between price and consumption of sucrose, to better understand its role in cost-benefit decisions. METHODS Dopamine neurons in the ventral tegmental area (VTA) were chemogenetically activated in rats, and a behavioural economics approach was used to quantify the relationship between price and consumption of sucrose. Motivation for sucrose was also assessed under a progressive ratio (PR) schedule of reinforcement. To further gauge the role of dopamine in cost-benefit trade-offs for sucrose, the effects of treatment with D-amphetamine and the dopamine receptor antagonist alpha-flupentixol were assessed. RESULTS Chemogenetic activation of VTA dopamine neurons increased demand elasticity, while responding for sucrose under a PR schedule of reinforcement was augmented upon stimulation of VTA dopamine neurons. Treatment with amphetamine partially replicated the effects of chemogenetic dopamine neuron activation, whereas treatment with alpha-flupentixol reduced free consumption of sucrose and had mixed effects on demand elasticity. CONCLUSIONS Stimulation of mesocorticolimbic dopaminergic neurotransmission altered cost-benefit trade-offs in a complex manner. It reduced the essential value of palatable food, increased incentive motivation and left free consumption unaltered. Together, these findings imply that mesocorticolimbic dopamine signalling differentially influences distinct components of cost expenditure processes aimed at obtaining rewards.
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18
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Bekhbat M, Treadway MT, Felger JC. Inflammation as a Pathophysiologic Pathway to Anhedonia: Mechanisms and Therapeutic Implications. Curr Top Behav Neurosci 2022; 58:397-419. [PMID: 34971449 DOI: 10.1007/7854_2021_294] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/18/2023]
Abstract
Anhedonia, characterized by a lack of motivation, interest, or ability to experience pleasure, is a prominent symptom of depression and other psychiatric disorders and has been associated with poor response to standard therapies. One pathophysiologic pathway receiving increased attention for its potential role in anhedonia is inflammation and its effects on the brain. Exogenous administration of inflammatory stimuli to humans and laboratory animals has reliably been found to affect neurotransmitters and neurocircuits involved in reward processing, including the ventral striatum and ventromedial prefrontal cortex, in association with reduced motivation. Moreover, a rich literature including meta-analyses describes increased inflammation in a significant proportion of patients with depression and other psychiatric illnesses involving anhedonia, as evident by elevated inflammatory cytokines, acute phase proteins, chemokines, and adhesion molecules in both the periphery and central nervous system. This endogenous inflammation may arise from numerous sources including stress, obesity or metabolic dysfunction, genetics, and lifestyle factors, many of which are also risk factors for psychiatric illness. Consistent with laboratory studies involving exogenous administration of peripheral inflammatory stimuli, neuroimaging studies have further confirmed that increased endogenous inflammation in depression is associated with decreased activation of and reduced functional connectivity within reward circuits involving ventral striatum and ventromedial prefrontal cortex in association with anhedonia. Here, we review recent evidence of relationships between inflammation and anhedonia, while highlighting translational and mechanistic work describing the impact of inflammation on synthesis, release, and reuptake of neurotransmitters like dopamine and glutamate that affects circuits to drive motivational deficits. We will then present insight into novel pharmacological strategies that target either inflammation or its downstream effects on the brain and behavior. The meaningful translation of these concepts through appropriately designed trials targeting therapies for psychiatric patients with high inflammation and transdiagnostic symptoms of anhedonia is also discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mandakh Bekhbat
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Michael T Treadway
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA
- Winship Cancer Institute, Atlanta, GA, USA
- Department of Psychology, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Jennifer C Felger
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA.
- Winship Cancer Institute, Atlanta, GA, USA.
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19
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Lisdexamfetamine and binge-eating disorder: A systematic review and meta-analysis of the preclinical and clinical data with a focus on mechanism of drug action in treating the disorder. Eur Neuropsychopharmacol 2021; 53:49-78. [PMID: 34461386 DOI: 10.1016/j.euroneuro.2021.08.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/09/2021] [Revised: 07/28/2021] [Accepted: 08/02/2021] [Indexed: 12/17/2022]
Abstract
Binge-Eating Disorder (BED) is the most common eating disorder in the United States. Lisdexamfetamine (LDX) was approved in 2015 by the FDA for treatment of BED and is the only drug approved for treating the disorder. There has been no systematic evaluation of the published clinical and preclinical evidence for efficacy of LDX in treating BED and the mechanisms responsible for the therapeutic action of the drug. To address this gap, we conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis using PRISMA guidelines. Fourteen clinical and seven preclinical articles were included. There is consistent evidence from clinical studies that LDX is an effective treatment for BED and that the drug reduces the BED symptoms and body weight of patients with the disorder. There is also consistent evidence from preclinical studies that LDX reduces food intake but no consistent evidence for a preferential reduction of palatable food consumption by the drug in rodents. The evidence on mechanism of action is more limited and suggests LDX may reduce binge eating by a combination of effects on appetite/satiety, reward, and cognitive processes, including attention and impulsivity/inhibition, that are mediated by catecholamine and serotonin mechanisms in the brain. There is an urgent need for adequately powered, placebo-controlled, behavioural and neuroimaging studies with LDX (recruiting patients and/or individuals with subclinical BED symptoms) to further investigate the mechanism of action of the drug in treating BED. An improved understanding of the behavioural and neurochemical mechanisms of action of LDX could lead to the development of improved drug therapies to treat BED.
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20
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Carratalá-Ros C, López-Cruz L, Martínez-Verdú A, Olivares-García R, Salamone JD, Correa M. Impact of Fluoxetine on Behavioral Invigoration of Appetitive and Aversively Motivated Responses: Interaction With Dopamine Depletion. Front Behav Neurosci 2021; 15:700182. [PMID: 34305547 PMCID: PMC8298758 DOI: 10.3389/fnbeh.2021.700182] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/25/2021] [Accepted: 06/21/2021] [Indexed: 12/04/2022] Open
Abstract
Impaired behavioral activation and effort-related motivational dysfunctions like fatigue and anergia are debilitating treatment-resistant symptoms of depression. Depressed people show a bias towards the selection of low effort activities. To determine if the broadly used antidepressant fluoxetine can improve behavioral activation and reverse dopamine (DA) depletion-induced anergia, male CD1 mice were evaluated for vigorous escape behaviors in an aversive context (forced swim test, FST), and also with an exercise preference choice task [running wheel (RW)-T-maze choice task]. In the FST, fluoxetine increased active behaviors (swimming, climbing) while reducing passive ones (immobility). However, fluoxetine was not effective at reducing anergia induced by the DA-depleting agent tetrabenazine, further decreasing vigorous climbing and increasing immobility. In the T-maze, fluoxetine alone produced the same pattern of effects as tetrabenazine. Moreover, fluoxetine did not reverse tetrabenazine-induced suppression of RW time but it reduced sucrose intake duration. This pattern of effects produced by fluoxetine in DA-depleted mice was dissimilar from devaluing food reinforcement by pre-feeding or making the food bitter since in both cases sucrose intake time was reduced but animals compensated by increasing time in the RW. Thus, fluoxetine improved escape in an aversive context but decreased relative preference for active reinforcement. Moreover, fluoxetine did not reverse the anergic effects of DA depletion. These results have implications for the use of fluoxetine for treating motivational symptoms such as anergia in depressed patients.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | - John D Salamone
- Behavioral Neuroscience Division, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, United States
| | - Mercè Correa
- Àrea de Psicobiologia, Universitat Jaume I, Castelló, Spain
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21
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Dose-response effects of d-amphetamine on effort-based decision-making and reinforcement learning. Neuropsychopharmacology 2021; 46:1078-1085. [PMID: 32722661 PMCID: PMC8115674 DOI: 10.1038/s41386-020-0779-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/21/2020] [Revised: 06/30/2020] [Accepted: 07/20/2020] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Abstract
Effort-related decision-making and reward learning are both dopamine-dependent, but preclinical research suggests they depend on different dopamine signaling dynamics. Therefore, the same dose of a dopaminergic medication could have differential effects on effort for reward vs. reward learning. However, no study has tested how effort and reward learning respond to the same dopaminergic medication within subjects. The current study aimed to test the effect of therapeutic doses of d-amphetamine on effort for reward and reward learning in the same healthy volunteers. Participants (n = 30) completed the Effort Expenditure for Reward Task (EEfRT) measure of effort-related decision-making, and the Probabilistic Reward Task (PRT) measure of reward learning, under placebo and two doses of d-amphetamine (10 mg, and 20 mg). Secondarily, we examined whether the individual characteristics of baseline working memory and willingness to exert effort for reward moderated the effects of d-amphetamine. d-Amphetamine increased willingness to exert effort, particularly at low to intermediate expected values of reward. Computational modeling analyses suggested this was due to decreased effort discounting rather than probability discounting or decision consistency. Both baseline effort and working memory emerged as moderators of this effect, such that d-amphetamine increased effort more in individuals with lower working memory and lower baseline effort, also primarily at low to intermediate expected values of reward. In contrast, d-amphetamine had no significant effect on reward learning. These results have implications for treatment of neuropsychiatric disorders, which may be characterized by multiple underlying reward dysfunctions.
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22
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Gabriel DBK, Liley AE, Freels TG, Simon NW. Dopamine receptors regulate preference between high-effort and high-risk rewards. Psychopharmacology (Berl) 2021; 238:991-1004. [PMID: 33410986 DOI: 10.1007/s00213-020-05745-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/17/2020] [Accepted: 12/01/2020] [Indexed: 01/02/2023]
Abstract
RATIONALE Optimal decision-making necessitates evaluation of multiple rewards that are each offset by distinct costs, such as high effort requirement or high risk of failure. The neurotransmitter dopamine is fundamental toward these cost-benefit analyses, and D1-like and D2-like dopamine receptors differently modulate the reward-discounting effects of both effort and risk. However, measuring the role of dopamine in regulating decision-making between options associated with distinct costs exceeds the scope of traditional rodent economic decision-making paradigms. OBJECTIVES We developed the effort vs probability economic conflict task (EvP) to model multimodal economic decision-making in rats. This task measures choice between two rewards of uniform magnitude associated with either a high effort requirement or risk of reward omission. We then tested the modulatory effects of systemic cocaine and D1/D2 blockade or activation on the preference between high-effort and high-risk alternatives. METHODS In the EvP, two reinforcers of equal magnitude are associated with either (1) an effort requirement that increases throughout the session (1, 5, 10, and 20 lever presses), or (2) a low probability of reward receipt (25% of probabilistic choices). Critically, the reinforcer for each choice is comparable (one pellet), which eliminates the influence of magnitude discrimination on the decision-making process. After establishing the task, the dopamine transporter blocker cocaine and D1/D2 antagonists and agonists were administered prior to EvP performance. RESULTS Preference shifted away from either effortful or probabilistic choice when either option became more costly, and this preference was highly variable between subjects and stable over time. Cocaine, D1 activation, and D2 blockade produced limited, dose-dependent shifts in choice preference contingent on high or low effort conditions. In contrast, D2 activation across multiple doses evoked a robust shift from effortful to risky choice that was evident even when clearly disadvantageous. CONCLUSIONS The EvP clearly demonstrates that rats can evaluate distinct effortful or risky costs associated with rewards of comparable magnitude, and shift preference away from either option with increasing cost. This preference is more tightly linked to D2 than D1 receptor manipulation, suggesting D2-like receptors as a possible therapeutic target for maladaptive biases toward risk-taking over effort.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniel B K Gabriel
- Department of Psychology, University of Memphis, 400 Innovation Drive, Memphis, TN, 38112, USA
| | - Anna E Liley
- Department of Psychology, University of Memphis, 400 Innovation Drive, Memphis, TN, 38112, USA
| | - Timothy G Freels
- Brudnick Neuropsychiatric Research Institute, University of Massachusetts Medical School, 55 N Lake Ave, Worcester, MA, 01655, USA
| | - Nicholas W Simon
- Department of Psychology, University of Memphis, 400 Innovation Drive, Memphis, TN, 38112, USA.
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Presby RE, Rotolo RA, Hurley EM, Ferrigno SM, Murphy CE, McMullen HP, Desai PA, Zorda EM, Kuperwasser FB, Carratala-Ros C, Correa M, Salamone JD. Sex differences in lever pressing and running wheel tasks of effort-based choice behavior in rats: Suppression of high effort activity by the serotonin transport inhibitor fluoxetine. Pharmacol Biochem Behav 2021; 202:173115. [PMID: 33493546 DOI: 10.1016/j.pbb.2021.173115] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/30/2020] [Revised: 11/18/2020] [Accepted: 01/13/2021] [Indexed: 12/25/2022]
Abstract
Selective serotonin transport (SERT) inhibitors such as fluoxetine are the most commonly prescribed treatments for depression. Although efficacious for many symptoms of depression, motivational impairments such as psychomotor retardation, anergia, fatigue and amotivation are relatively resistant to treatment with SERT inhibitors, and these drugs have been reported to exacerbate motivational deficits in some people. In order to study motivational dysfunctions in animal models, procedures have been developed to measure effort-related decision making, which offer animals a choice between high effort actions leading to highly valued reinforcers, or low effort/low reward options. In the present studies, male and female rats were tested on two different tests of effort-based choice: a fixed ratio 5 (FR5)/chow feeding choice procedure and a running wheel (RW)/chow feeding choice task. The baseline pattern of choice differed across tasks for males and females, with males pressing the lever more than females on the operant task, and females running more than males on the RW task. Administration of the SERT inhibitor and antidepressant fluoxetine suppressed the higher effort activity on each task (lever pressing and wheel running) in both males and females. The serotonin receptor mediating the suppressive effects of fluoxetine is uncertain, because serotonin antagonists with different patterns of receptor selectivity failed to reverse the effects of fluoxetine. Nevertheless, these studies uncovered important sex differences, and demonstrated that the suppressive effects of fluoxetine on high effort activities are not limited to tasks involving food reinforced behavior or appetite suppressive effects. It is possible that this line of research will contribute to an understanding of the neurochemical factors regulating selection of voluntary physical activity vs. sedentary behaviors, which could be relevant for understanding the role of physical activity in psychiatric disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rose E Presby
- Behavioral Neuroscience Division, Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT 06269-1020, USA
| | - Renee A Rotolo
- Behavioral Neuroscience Division, Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT 06269-1020, USA
| | - Erin M Hurley
- Behavioral Neuroscience Division, Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT 06269-1020, USA
| | - Sarah M Ferrigno
- Behavioral Neuroscience Division, Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT 06269-1020, USA
| | - Cayla E Murphy
- Behavioral Neuroscience Division, Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT 06269-1020, USA
| | - Haley P McMullen
- Behavioral Neuroscience Division, Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT 06269-1020, USA
| | - Pranally A Desai
- Behavioral Neuroscience Division, Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT 06269-1020, USA
| | - Emma M Zorda
- Behavioral Neuroscience Division, Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT 06269-1020, USA
| | - Felicita B Kuperwasser
- Behavioral Neuroscience Division, Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT 06269-1020, USA
| | - Carla Carratala-Ros
- Behavioral Neuroscience Division, Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT 06269-1020, USA; Area de Psicobiologia, Universitat Jaume I, Castelló, Spain
| | - Merce Correa
- Behavioral Neuroscience Division, Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT 06269-1020, USA; Area de Psicobiologia, Universitat Jaume I, Castelló, Spain
| | - John D Salamone
- Behavioral Neuroscience Division, Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT 06269-1020, USA.
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Carratalá-Ros C, Olivares-García R, Martínez-Verdú A, Arias-Sandoval E, Salamone JD, Correa M. Energizing effects of bupropion on effortful behaviors in mice under positive and negative test conditions: modulation of DARPP-32 phosphorylation patterns. Psychopharmacology (Berl) 2021; 238:3357-3373. [PMID: 34498115 PMCID: PMC8629809 DOI: 10.1007/s00213-021-05950-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/22/2021] [Accepted: 08/02/2021] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
Abstract
Motivational symptoms such as anergia, fatigue, and reduced exertion of effort are seen in depressed people. To model this, nucleus accumbens (Nacb) dopamine (DA) depletions are used to induce a low-effort bias in rodents tested on effort-based decision-making. We evaluated the effect of the catecholamine uptake blocker bupropion on its own, and after administration of tetrabenazine (TBZ), which blocks vesicular storage, depletes DA, and induces depressive symptoms in humans. Male CD1 mice were tested on a 3-choice-T-maze task that assessed preference between a reinforcer involving voluntary physical activity (running wheel, RW) vs. sedentary activities (sweet food pellet intake or a neutral non-social odor). Mice also were tested on the forced swim test (FST), two anxiety-related measures (dark-light box (DL), and elevated plus maze (EPM)). Expression of phosphorylated DARPP-32 (Thr34 and Thr75) was evaluated by immunohistochemistry as a marker of DA-related signal transduction. Bupropion increased selection of RW activity on the T-maze. TBZ reduced time running, but increased time-consuming sucrose, indicating an induction of a low-effort bias, but not an effect on primary sucrose motivation. In the FST, bupropion reduced immobility, increasing swimming and climbing, and TBZ produced the opposite effects. Bupropion reversed the effects of TBZ on the T-maze and the FST, and also on pDARPP32-Thr34 expression in Nacb core. None of these manipulations affected anxiety-related parameters. Thus, bupropion improved active behaviors, which were negatively motivated in the FST, and active behaviors that were positively motivated in the T-maze task, which has implications for using catecholamine uptake inhibitors for treating anergia and fatigue-like symptoms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carla Carratalá-Ros
- Àrea de Psicobiologia, Universitat Jaume I, Campus de Riu Sec, 12071 Castelló, Spain
| | | | - Andrea Martínez-Verdú
- Àrea de Psicobiologia, Universitat Jaume I, Campus de Riu Sec, 12071 Castelló, Spain
| | - Edgar Arias-Sandoval
- Àrea de Psicobiologia, Universitat Jaume I, Campus de Riu Sec, 12071 Castelló, Spain
| | - John D. Salamone
- Behavioral Neuroscience Division, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT 06269-1020 USA
| | - Mercè Correa
- Àrea de Psicobiologia, Universitat Jaume I, Campus de Riu Sec, 12071, Castelló, Spain.
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25
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Rotolo RA, Kalaba P, Dragacevic V, Presby RE, Neri J, Robertson E, Yang JH, Correa M, Bakulev V, Volkova NN, Pifl C, Lubec G, Salamone JD. Behavioral and dopamine transporter binding properties of the modafinil analog (S, S)-CE-158: reversal of the motivational effects of tetrabenazine and enhancement of progressive ratio responding. Psychopharmacology (Berl) 2020; 237:3459-3470. [PMID: 32770257 PMCID: PMC7572767 DOI: 10.1007/s00213-020-05625-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/04/2020] [Accepted: 07/27/2020] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
RATIONALE Atypical dopamine (DA) transport blockers such as modafinil and its analogs may be useful for treating motivational symptoms of depression and other disorders. Previous research has shown that the DA depleting agent tetrabenazine can reliably induce motivational deficits in rats, as evidenced by a shift towards a low-effort bias in effort-based choice tasks. This is consistent with human studies showing that people with major depression show a bias towards low-effort activities. OBJECTIVES Recent studies demonstrated that the atypical DA transport (DAT) inhibitor (S)-CE-123 reversed tetrabenazine-induced motivational deficits, increased progressive ratio (PROG) lever pressing, and increased extracellular DA in the nucleus accumbens. In the present studies, a recently synthesized modafinil analog, (S, S)-CE-158, was assessed in a series of neurochemical and behavioral studies in rats. RESULTS (S, S)-CE-158 demonstrated the ability to reverse the effort-related effects of tetrabenazine and increase selection of high-effort PROG lever pressing in rats tested on PROG/chow feeding choice task. (S, S)-CE-158 showed a high selectivity for inhibiting DAT compared with other monoamine transporters, and systemic administration of (S, S)-CE-158 increased extracellular DA in the nucleus accumbens during the behaviorally active time course, which is consistent with the effects of (S)-CE-123 and other DAT inhibitors that enhance high-effort responding. CONCLUSIONS These studies provide an initial neurochemical characterization of a novel atypical DAT inhibitor, and demonstrate that this compound is active in models of effort-related choice. This research could contribute to the development of novel compounds for the treatment of motivational dysfunctions in humans.
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Affiliation(s)
- Renee A. Rotolo
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, USA
| | - Predrag Kalaba
- Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Faculty of Life Sciences, University of Vienna, Althanstraße 14, 1090 Vienna, Austria,Department of Neuroproteomics, Paracelsus Medical University, Salzburg, Austria
| | - Vladimir Dragacevic
- Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Faculty of Life Sciences, University of Vienna, Althanstraße 14, 1090 Vienna, Austria
| | - Rose E. Presby
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, USA
| | - Julia Neri
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, USA
| | - Emily Robertson
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, USA
| | - Jen-Hau Yang
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, USA
| | - Merce Correa
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, USA,Àrea de Psicobiologia, Campus de Riu Sec, Universitat Jaume I, 12071 Castelló, Spain
| | - Vasiliy Bakulev
- Ural Federal University named after the first President of Russia B. N. Yeltsin, 19 Mira St., Yekaterinburg 620002, Russia
| | - Natalia N. Volkova
- Ural Federal University named after the first President of Russia B. N. Yeltsin, 19 Mira St., Yekaterinburg 620002, Russia
| | - Christian Pifl
- Centre for Brain Research, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Gert Lubec
- Department of Neuroproteomics, Paracelsus Medical University, Salzburg, Austria.
| | - John D. Salamone
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, USA,Corresponding authors: John D. Salamone () and Gert Lubec ()
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26
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Rotolo RA, Presby RE, Tracy O, Asar S, Yang JH, Correa M, Murray F, Salamone JD. The novel atypical dopamine transport inhibitor CT-005404 has pro-motivational effects in neurochemical and inflammatory models of effort-based dysfunctions related to psychopathology. Neuropharmacology 2020; 183:108325. [PMID: 32956676 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropharm.2020.108325] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/18/2020] [Revised: 09/11/2020] [Accepted: 09/15/2020] [Indexed: 01/23/2023]
Abstract
Depressed individuals suffer from effort-related motivational symptoms such as anergia and fatigue, which are resistant to treatment with many common antidepressants. While drugs that block dopamine transport (DAT) reportedly have positive motivational effects, DAT inhibitors such as cocaine and amphetamines produce undesirable side effects. Thus, there is a need to develop and characterize novel atypical DAT inhibitors with unique and selective binding profiles. Rodent effort-based choice tasks provide useful models of motivational dysfunctions. With these tasks, animals choose between a high-effort instrumental action leading to highly valued reinforcement vs. a low effort/low reward option. The present studies focused on the initial characterization of a novel atypical DAT inhibitor, CT-005404, which binds to DAT with high selectivity relative to serotonin and norepinephrine transport, and produces long-term elevations of extracellular DA. CT-005404 was assessed for its ability to attenuate the effort-related motivational effects of the DA depleting agent tetrabenazine and the pro-inflammatory cytokine interleukin-1β (IL-1β) using a fixed ratio 5/chow feeding choice test. Tetrabenazine (1.0 mg/kg i.p.) shifted choice behavior, decreasing lever pressing and increasing chow intake. IL-1β (4.0 μg/kg i.p.) also decreased lever pressing. CT-005404 was co-administered (7.5-30.0 mg/kg p.o.) with either tetrabenazine or IL-1β, and the 15.0 and 30.0 mg/kg doses significantly reversed the effects of tetrabenazine and IL-1β. CT-005404 administered alone produced a dose-related increase in lever pressing in rats tested on a progressive ratio/chow feeding choice task. Atypical DAT inhibitors such as CT-005404 offer potential as a new avenue for drug treatment of motivational dysfunctions in humans.
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Affiliation(s)
- Renee A Rotolo
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, 06261-1020, USA
| | - Rose E Presby
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, 06261-1020, USA
| | - Olivia Tracy
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, 06261-1020, USA
| | - Sokaina Asar
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, 06261-1020, USA
| | - Jen-Hau Yang
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, 06261-1020, USA
| | - Merce Correa
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, 06261-1020, USA; Àrea de Psicobiologia, Campus de Riu Sec, Universitat Jaume I, 12071, Castelló, Spain
| | - Fraser Murray
- Chronos Therapeutics, The Magdalen Centre, Oxford Science Park, Oxford, OX4 4GA, UK
| | - John D Salamone
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, 06261-1020, USA.
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Yang JH, Presby RE, Rotolo RA, Quiles T, Okifo K, Zorda E, Fitch RH, Correa M, Salamone JD. The dopamine depleting agent tetrabenazine alters effort-related decision making as assessed by mouse touchscreen procedures. Psychopharmacology (Berl) 2020; 237:2845-2854. [PMID: 32561947 DOI: 10.1007/s00213-020-05578-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/14/2020] [Accepted: 06/01/2020] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Abstract
RATIONALE Effort-based decision-making tasks allow animals to choose between preferred reinforcers that require high effort to obtain vs. low-effort/low reward options. Mesolimbic dopamine (DA) and related neural systems regulate effort-based choice. Tetrabenazine (TBZ) is a vesicular monoamine transport type-2 inhibitor that blocks DA storage and depletes DA. In humans, TBZ induces motivational dysfunction and depression. TBZ has been shown reliably to induce a low-effort bias in rats, but there are fewer mouse studies. OBJECTIVES The present studies used touchscreen operant procedures (Bussey-Saksida chambers) to assess the effects of TBZ on effort-based choice in mice. METHODS C57BL6 mice were trained to press an elevated lit panel on the touchscreen on a fixed ratio 1 schedule reinforced by strawberry milkshake, vs. approaching and consuming a concurrently available but less preferred food pellets (Bio-serv). RESULTS TBZ (2.0-8.0 mg/kg IP) shifted choice, producing a dose-related decrease in panel pressing but an increase in pellet intake. In contrast, reinforcer devaluation by pre-feeding substantially decreased both panel pressing and pellet intake. In free-feeding choice tests, mice strongly preferred the milkshake vs. the pellets, and TBZ had no effect on milkshake intake or preference, indicating that the TBZ-induced low-effort bias was not due to changes in primary food motivation or preference. TBZ significantly decreased tissue levels of nucleus accumbens DA. CONCLUSION The DA depleting agent TBZ induced an effort-related motivational dysfunction in mice, which may have clinical relevance for assessing novel drug targets for their potential use as therapeutic agents in patients with motivation impairments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jen-Hau Yang
- Behavioral Neuroscience Division, Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, USA
| | - Rose E Presby
- Behavioral Neuroscience Division, Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, USA
| | - Renee A Rotolo
- Behavioral Neuroscience Division, Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, USA
| | - Taina Quiles
- Behavioral Neuroscience Division, Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, USA
| | - Kevin Okifo
- Behavioral Neuroscience Division, Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, USA
| | - Emma Zorda
- Behavioral Neuroscience Division, Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, USA
| | - Roslyn Holly Fitch
- Behavioral Neuroscience Division, Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, USA
| | - Mercè Correa
- Behavioral Neuroscience Division, Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, USA.,Area de Psicobiologia, Universitat Jaume I, Castelló, Spain
| | - John D Salamone
- Behavioral Neuroscience Division, Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, USA.
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Griesius S, Mellor JR, Robinson ES. Comparison of acute treatment with delayed-onset versus rapid-acting antidepressants on effort-related choice behaviour. Psychopharmacology (Berl) 2020; 237:2381-2394. [PMID: 32435818 PMCID: PMC7351874 DOI: 10.1007/s00213-020-05541-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/28/2019] [Accepted: 04/27/2020] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
RATIONALE Reward-related impairments are common in major depressive disorder (MDD) and may contribute to the loss of interest in pleasurable activities. A novel approach to studying reward-related decision-making are effort-based tasks; however, direct comparisons between delayed-onset and rapid-acting antidepressants (ADs) have not yet been carried out. OBJECTIVES To investigate the effects of conventional delayed-onset ADs versus rapid-acting ADs, ketamine and scopolamine, on effort-related choice behaviour. METHODS Female Lister hooded rats were trained in an operant effort for reward task (EfRT) where animals choose between working for a high value-high effort reward and consuming low value-low effort chow. Using a within-subject study design, animals were then tested following acute treatment with different monoaminergic ADs, and the rapid-acting ADs ketamine or scopolamine. RESULTS Consistent with previous findings, we found choice behaviour was sensitive to dopaminergic manipulations. We observed that pre-feeding altered choice behaviour and that the use of high or low value reward differentially affected behaviour. Monoamine re-uptake inhibitors and rapid-acting ADs resulted in similar, general patterns of reduced motivation without any evidence for specific effects, and we did not observe any clear differences between these classes of antidepressant. CONCLUSIONS Motivational changes induced by dopaminergic manipulations and pre-feeding differentially affect effort choice behaviour. However, both conventional delayed-onset ADs and ketamine and scopolamine appear to have detrimental effects on motivation in this task at the higher doses tested without any evidence of specificity for effort-related choice behaviour, in contrast to their specificity in tasks which look at more cognitive aspects of reward processing.
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Affiliation(s)
- Simonas Griesius
- School of Physiology, Pharmacology and Neuroscience, University of Bristol, Biomedical Sciences Building, University Walk, Bristol, BS8 1TD, UK.
| | - Jack R Mellor
- School of Physiology, Pharmacology and Neuroscience, University of Bristol, Biomedical Sciences Building, University Walk, Bristol, BS8 1TD, UK
| | - Emma Sj Robinson
- School of Physiology, Pharmacology and Neuroscience, University of Bristol, Biomedical Sciences Building, University Walk, Bristol, BS8 1TD, UK
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29
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Chemogenetic Modulation and Single-Photon Calcium Imaging in Anterior Cingulate Cortex Reveal a Mechanism for Effort-Based Decisions. J Neurosci 2020; 40:5628-5643. [PMID: 32527984 PMCID: PMC7363467 DOI: 10.1523/jneurosci.2548-19.2020] [Citation(s) in RCA: 35] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/25/2019] [Revised: 05/23/2020] [Accepted: 05/24/2020] [Indexed: 11/25/2022] Open
Abstract
The ACC is implicated in effort exertion and choices based on effort cost, but it is still unclear how it mediates this cost-benefit evaluation. Here, male rats were trained to exert effort for a high-value reward (sucrose pellets) in a progressive ratio lever-pressing task. Trained rats were then tested in two conditions: a no-choice condition where lever-pressing for sucrose was the only available food option, and a choice condition where a low-value reward (lab chow) was freely available as an alternative to pressing for sucrose. Disruption of ACC, via either chemogenetic inhibition or excitation, reduced lever-pressing in the choice, but not in the no-choice, condition. We next looked for value coding cells in ACC during effortful behavior and reward consumption phases during choice and no-choice conditions. For this, we used in vivo miniaturized fluorescence microscopy to reliably track responses of the same cells and compare how ACC neurons respond during the same effortful behavior where there was a choice versus when there was no-choice. We found that lever-press and sucrose-evoked responses were significantly weaker during choice compared with no-choice sessions, which may have rendered them more susceptible to chemogenetic disruption. Together, findings from our interference experiments and neural recordings suggest that a mechanism by which ACC mediates effortful decisions is in the discrimination of the utility of available options. ACC regulates these choices by providing a stable population code for the relative value of different options. SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT The ACC is implicated in effort-based decision-making. Here, we used chemogenetics and in vivo calcium imaging to explore its mechanism. Rats were trained to lever press for a high-value reward and tested in two conditions: a no-choice condition where lever-pressing for the high-value reward was the only option, and a choice condition where a low-value reward was also available. Inhibition or excitation of ACC reduced effort toward the high-value option, but only in the choice condition. Neural responses in ACC were weaker in the choice compared with the no-choice condition. A mechanism by which ACC regulates effortful decisions is in providing a stable population code for the discrimination of the utility of available options.
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30
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Silveira MM, Wittekindt SN, Mortazavi L, Hathaway BA, Winstanley CA. Investigating serotonergic contributions to cognitive effort allocation, attention, and impulsive action in female rats. J Psychopharmacol 2020; 34:452-466. [PMID: 31913079 DOI: 10.1177/0269881119896043] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/15/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Individuals must frequently evaluate whether it is worth allocating cognitive effort for desired outcomes. Motivational deficits are a common feature of psychiatric illness such as major depression. Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors are commonly used to treat this disorder, yet some data suggest these compounds are ineffective at treating amotivation, and may even exacerbate it. AIMS Here we used the rodent Cognitive Effort Task (rCET) to assess serotonergic (5-hydroxytryptamine, 5-HT) contributions to decision-making with cognitive effort costs. METHODS The rCET is a modified version of the 5-choice serial reaction time task, a well-validated test of visuospatial attention and impulse control. At the start of each rCET trial, rats chose one of two levers, which set the difficulty of an attentional challenge, namely the localization of a visual stimulus illuminated for 0.2 or 1 s on hard versus easy trials. Successful completion of hard trials was rewarded with double the sugar pellets. Twenty-four female Long-Evans rats were trained on the rCET and systemically administered the 5-HT1A agonist 8-OH-DPAT, the 5-HT2A antagonist M100907, the 5-HT2C agonist Ro-60-0175, as well as the 5-HT2C antagonist SB 242, 084. RESULTS 5-HT2A antagonism dose-dependently reduced premature responding, while 5-HT2C antagonism had the opposite effect. 8-OH-DPAT impaired accuracy of target detection at higher doses, while Ro-60-0175 dose-dependently improved accuracy on difficult trials. However, none of the drugs affected the rats' choice of the harder option. CONCLUSION When considered with existing work evaluating decision-making with physical effort costs, it appears that serotonergic signalling plays a minor role in guiding effort allocation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mason M Silveira
- Department of Psychology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada.,Djavad Mowafaghian Centre for Brain Health, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada
| | - Sebastian N Wittekindt
- Department of Psychology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada.,Djavad Mowafaghian Centre for Brain Health, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada
| | - Leili Mortazavi
- Department of Psychology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada.,Djavad Mowafaghian Centre for Brain Health, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada
| | - Brett A Hathaway
- Department of Psychology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada.,Djavad Mowafaghian Centre for Brain Health, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada
| | - Catharine A Winstanley
- Department of Psychology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada.,Djavad Mowafaghian Centre for Brain Health, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada
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31
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Daniels S, Horman T, Lapointe T, Melanson B, Storace A, Kennedy SH, Frey BN, Rizvi SJ, Hassel S, Mueller DJ, Parikh SV, Lam RW, Blier P, Farzan F, Giacobbe P, Milev R, Placenza F, Soares CN, Turecki G, Uher R, Leri F. Reverse translation of major depressive disorder symptoms: A framework for the behavioural phenotyping of putative biomarkers. J Affect Disord 2020; 263:353-366. [PMID: 31969265 DOI: 10.1016/j.jad.2019.11.108] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/19/2019] [Revised: 11/13/2019] [Accepted: 11/22/2019] [Indexed: 02/08/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Reverse translating putative biomarkers of depression from patients to animals is complex because Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) is a highly heterogenous condition. This review proposes an approach to reverse translation based on relating relevant bio-behavioural functions in laboratory rodents to MDD symptoms. METHODS This systematic review outlines symptom clusters assessed by psychometric tests of MDD and antidepressant treatment response including the Montgomery-Åsberg Depression Rating Scale, the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale, and the Beck Depression Inventory. Symptoms were related to relevant behavioural assays in laboratory rodents. RESULTS The resulting battery of tests includes passive coping, anxiety-like behaviours, sleep, caloric intake, cognition, psychomotor functions, hedonic reactivity and aversive learning. These assays are discussed alongside relevant clinical symptoms of MDD, providing a framework through which reverse translation of a biomarker can be interpreted. LIMITATIONS Certain aspects of MDD may not be quantified by tests in laboratory rodents, and their biological significance may not always be of clinical relevance. CONCLUSIONS Using this reverse translation approach, it is possible to clarify the functional significance of a putative biomarker in rodents and hence translate its contribution to specific clinical symptoms, or clusters of symptoms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stephen Daniels
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, University of Guelph, Guelph N1G 2W1, Ontario, Canada
| | - Thomas Horman
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, University of Guelph, Guelph N1G 2W1, Ontario, Canada
| | - Thomas Lapointe
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, University of Guelph, Guelph N1G 2W1, Ontario, Canada
| | - Brett Melanson
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, University of Guelph, Guelph N1G 2W1, Ontario, Canada
| | - Alexandra Storace
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, University of Guelph, Guelph N1G 2W1, Ontario, Canada
| | - Sidney H Kennedy
- University of Toronto Health Network, Toronto, Ontario, Canada; St. Michael's Hospital, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | | | - Sakina J Rizvi
- University of Toronto Health Network, Toronto, Ontario, Canada; St. Michael's Hospital, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | | | - Daniel J Mueller
- The Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | | | - Raymond W Lam
- The University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
| | - Pierre Blier
- The Royal Institute of Mental Health Research, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
| | - Faranak Farzan
- Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada
| | - Peter Giacobbe
- University of Toronto Health Network, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | | | - Franca Placenza
- University of Toronto Health Network, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | | | | | - Rudolf Uher
- Dalhousie University, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada
| | - Francesco Leri
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, University of Guelph, Guelph N1G 2W1, Ontario, Canada.
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Lisdexamfetamine suppresses instrumental and consummatory behaviors supported by foods with varying degrees of palatability: Exploration of a binge-like eating model. Pharmacol Biochem Behav 2020; 189:172851. [DOI: 10.1016/j.pbb.2020.172851] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/14/2019] [Revised: 11/26/2019] [Accepted: 01/09/2020] [Indexed: 01/05/2023]
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Carratalá-Ros C, López-Cruz L, SanMiguel N, Ibáñez-Marín P, Martínez-Verdú A, Salamone JD, Correa M. Preference for Exercise vs. More Sedentary Reinforcers: Validation of an Animal Model of Tetrabenazine-Induced Anergia. Front Behav Neurosci 2020; 13:289. [PMID: 32082126 PMCID: PMC7002319 DOI: 10.3389/fnbeh.2019.00289] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/15/2019] [Accepted: 12/19/2019] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Physical activities can have intrinsic motivational or reinforcing properties. The choice to engage in voluntary physical activity is undertaken in relation to the selection of other alternatives, such as sedentary behaviors, drugs, or food intake. The mesolimbic dopamine (DA) system plays a critical role in behavioral activation or exertion of effort, and DA antagonism or depletion induces anergia in effort-based decision-making tasks. However, little is known about the neural mechanisms underlying the decision-making processes that establish preferences for sedentary vs. activity-based reinforcers. In the present work with male CD1 mice, we evaluated the effect of tetrabenazine (TBZ), a DA-depleting agent, on a three-choice T-maze task developed to assess preference between reinforcers with different behavioral activation requirements and sensory properties [i.e., a running wheel (RW) vs. sweet pellets or a neutral nonsocial odor]. We also studied the effects of TBZ on the forced swim test (FST), which measures climbing and swimming in a stressful setting, and on anxiety tests [dark-light (DL) box and elevated plus maze (EPM)]. In the three-choice task, TBZ reduced time running in the wheel but increased time spent consuming sucrose, thus indicating reduced activation but relatively intact sucrose reinforcement. The effect of TBZ was not mimicked by motivational manipulations that change the value of the reinforcers, such as making the RW aversive or harder to move, food-restricting the animals, inducing a binge-like eating pattern, or introducing social odors. In the FST, TBZ decreased time climbing (most active behavior) and increased immobility but did not affect anxiety in the DL or EPM. These results indicate that the three-choice T-maze task could be useful for assessing DA modulation of preferences for exercise based on activation and effort requirements, differentiating those effects from changes in preference produced by altering physical requirements, food restriction state, and stress during testing.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carla Carratalá-Ros
- Àrea de Psicobiologia, Campus de Riu Sec, Universitat Jaume I, Castelló de la Plana, Spain
| | - Laura López-Cruz
- Àrea de Psicobiologia, Campus de Riu Sec, Universitat Jaume I, Castelló de la Plana, Spain
| | - Noemí SanMiguel
- Àrea de Psicobiologia, Campus de Riu Sec, Universitat Jaume I, Castelló de la Plana, Spain
| | - Patricia Ibáñez-Marín
- Àrea de Psicobiologia, Campus de Riu Sec, Universitat Jaume I, Castelló de la Plana, Spain
| | - Andrea Martínez-Verdú
- Àrea de Psicobiologia, Campus de Riu Sec, Universitat Jaume I, Castelló de la Plana, Spain
| | - John D Salamone
- Behavioral Neuroscience Division, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, United States
| | - Mercè Correa
- Àrea de Psicobiologia, Campus de Riu Sec, Universitat Jaume I, Castelló de la Plana, Spain
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Pharmacological studies of effort-related decision making using mouse touchscreen procedures: effects of dopamine antagonism do not resemble reinforcer devaluation by removal of food restriction. Psychopharmacology (Berl) 2020; 237:33-43. [PMID: 31392358 DOI: 10.1007/s00213-019-05343-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/22/2019] [Accepted: 07/25/2019] [Indexed: 01/14/2023]
Abstract
RATIONALE Effort-based decision-making tasks offer animals choices between preferred reinforcers that require high effort to obtain vs. low effort/low reward options. The neural mechanisms of effort-based choice are widely studied in rats, and evidence indicates that mesolimbic dopamine (DA) and related neural systems play a key role. Fewer studies of effort-based choice have been performed in mice. OBJECTIVES The present studies used touchscreen operant procedures (Bussey-Saksida boxes) to assess effort-based choice in mice. METHODS CD1 mice were assessed on a concurrent fixed ratio 1 panel pressing/choice procedure. Mice were allowed to choose between rearing to press an elevated panel on the touchscreen for a preferred food (strawberry milkshake) vs. consuming a concurrently available less preferred alternative (high carbohydrate pellets). RESULTS The DA D2 antagonist haloperidol (0.05-0.15 mg/kg IP) produced a dose-related decrease in panel pressing. Intake of food pellets was not reduced by haloperidol, and in fact, there was a significant quadratic trend, indicating a tendency for pellet intake to increase at low/moderate doses. In contrast, reinforcer devaluation by removing food restriction substantially decreased both panel pressing and pellet intake. In free-feeding choice tests, mice strongly preferred milkshake vs. pellets. Haloperidol did not affect food intake or preference. CONCLUSION Haloperidol reduced the tendency to work for food, but this reduction was not due to decreases in primary food motivation or preference. Mouse touchscreen procedures demonstrate effects of haloperidol that are similar but not identical to those shown in rats. These rodent studies may be relevant for understanding motivational dysfunctions in humans.
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Lewis LR, Benn A, Dwyer DM, Robinson ESJ. Affective biases and their interaction with other reward-related deficits in rodent models of psychiatric disorders. Behav Brain Res 2019; 372:112051. [PMID: 31276704 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbr.2019.112051] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/23/2019] [Revised: 05/09/2019] [Accepted: 06/20/2019] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Abstract
Major depressive disorder (MDD) is one of the leading global causes of disability. Symptoms of MDD can vary person to person, and current treatments often fail to alleviate the poor quality of life that patients experience. One of the two core diagnostic criteria for MDD is the loss of interest in previously pleasurable activities, which suggests a link between the disease aetiology and reward processing. Cognitive impairments are also common in patients with MDD, and more recently, emotional processing deficits known as affective biases have been recognised as a key feature of the disorder. Studies in animals have found similar affective biases related to reward. In this review we consider these affective biases in the context of other reward-related deficits and examine how affective biases associated with learning and memory may interact with the wider behavioural symptoms seen in MDD. We discuss recent developments in how analogues of affective biases and other aspects of reward processing can be assessed in rodents, as well as how these behaviours are influenced in models of MDD. We subsequently discuss evidence for the neurobiological mechanisms contributing to one or more reward-related deficits in preclinical models of MDD, identified using these behavioural assays. We consider how the relationships between these selective behavioural assays and the neurobiological mechanisms for affective bias and reward processing could be used to identify potential treatment strategies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lucy R Lewis
- School of Psychology, Tower Building, Cardiff University, Park Place, Cardiff, CF10 3AT, United Kingdom.
| | - Abigail Benn
- University of Oxford, Department of Experimental Psychology, Tinsley Building, Marsden Road, Oxford, OX1 3TA, United Kingdom.
| | - Dominic M Dwyer
- School of Psychology, Tower Building, Cardiff University, Park Place, Cardiff, CF10 3AT, United Kingdom.
| | - Emma S J Robinson
- School of Physiology, Pharmacology & Neuroscience, Biomedical Sciences Building, University of Bristol, University Walk, Bristol, BS8 1TD, United Kingdom.
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Rotolo RA, Dragacevic V, Kalaba P, Urban E, Zehl M, Roller A, Wackerlig J, Langer T, Pistis M, De Luca MA, Caria F, Schwartz R, Presby RE, Yang JH, Samels S, Correa M, Lubec G, Salamone JD. The Novel Atypical Dopamine Uptake Inhibitor (S)-CE-123 Partially Reverses the Effort-Related Effects of the Dopamine Depleting Agent Tetrabenazine and Increases Progressive Ratio Responding. Front Pharmacol 2019; 10:682. [PMID: 31316379 PMCID: PMC6611521 DOI: 10.3389/fphar.2019.00682] [Citation(s) in RCA: 35] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/15/2018] [Accepted: 05/27/2019] [Indexed: 12/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Animal studies of effort-based choice behavior are being used to model effort-related motivational dysfunctions in humans. With these procedures, animals are offered a choice between high-effort instrumental actions leading to highly valued reinforcers vs. low effort/low reward options. Several previous studies have shown that dopamine (DA) uptake inhibitors, including GBR12909, lisdexamfetamine, methylphenidate, and PRX-14040, can reverse the effort-related effects of the vesicular monoamine transport blocker tetrabenazine, which inhibits DA storage. Because many drugs that block DA transport act as major stimulants that also release DA, and produce a number of undesirable side effects, there is a need to develop and characterize novel atypical DA transport inhibitors. (S)-CE-123 ((S)-5-((benzhydrylsulfinyl) methyl)thiazole) is a recently developed analog of modafinil with the biochemical characteristics of an atypical DA transport blocker. The present paper describes the enantioselective synthesis and initial chemical characterization of (S)-CE-123, as well as behavioral experiments involving effort-based choice and microdialysis studies of extracellular DA. Rats were assessed using the fixed ratio 5/chow feeding choice test. Tetrabenazine (1.0 mg/kg) shifted choice behavior, decreasing lever pressing and increasing chow intake. (S)-CE-123 was coadministered at doses ranging from 6.0 to 24.0 mg/kg, and the highest dose partially but significantly reversed the effects of tetrabenazine, although this dose had no effect on fixed ratio responding when administered alone. Additional experiments showed that (S)-CE-123 significantly increased lever pressing on a progressive ratio/chow feeding choice task and that the effective dose (24.0 mg/kg) increased extracellular DA in nucleus accumbens core. In summary, (S)-CE-123 has the behavioral and neurochemical profile of a compound that can block DA transport, reverse the effort-related effects of tetrabenazine, and increase selection of high-effort progressive ratio responding. This suggests that (S)-CE-123 or a similar compound could be useful as a treatment for effort-related motivational dysfunction in humans.
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Affiliation(s)
- Renee A Rotolo
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, United States
| | - Vladimir Dragacevic
- Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Faculty of Life Sciences, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Predrag Kalaba
- Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Faculty of Life Sciences, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Ernst Urban
- Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Faculty of Life Sciences, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Martin Zehl
- Department of Analytical Chemistry, Faculty of Chemistry, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Alexander Roller
- X-ray Structure Analysis Centre, Faculty of Chemistry, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Judith Wackerlig
- Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Faculty of Life Sciences, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Thierry Langer
- Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Faculty of Life Sciences, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Marco Pistis
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Cagliari, National Institute of Neuroscience (INN), Cagliari, Italy
| | - Maria Antonietta De Luca
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Cagliari, National Institute of Neuroscience (INN), Cagliari, Italy
| | - Francesca Caria
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Cagliari, National Institute of Neuroscience (INN), Cagliari, Italy
| | - Rebecca Schwartz
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, United States
| | - Rose E Presby
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, United States
| | - Jen-Hau Yang
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, United States
| | - Shanna Samels
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, United States
| | - Merce Correa
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, United States.,Àrea de Psicobiologia, Universitat Jaume I, Castelló, Spain
| | - Gert Lubec
- Department of Neuroproteomics, Paracelsus Medical University, Salzburg, Austria
| | - John D Salamone
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, United States
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Hart EE, Izquierdo A. Quantity versus quality: Convergent findings in effort-based choice tasks. Behav Processes 2019; 164:178-185. [PMID: 31082477 DOI: 10.1016/j.beproc.2019.05.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/12/2019] [Revised: 05/03/2019] [Accepted: 05/07/2019] [Indexed: 01/14/2023]
Abstract
Organisms must frequently make cost-benefit decisions based on time, risk, and effort in choosing rewards to pursue. Various tasks have been developed to assess effort-based choice in rats, and experimenters have found largely similar results across tasks and brain regions. In this review, we focus primarily on the convergence of different effort-based choice tasks where quality or quantity of reward are manipulated. In the former, the rat is typically presented with the option to work for a preferred reward or select a less preferred, but freely-available reward. In such paradigms, the rewards are of different identities but are confirmed to differ qualitatively in value by a food preference task when both are freely-available. In the latter task type, rats are required to select between higher magnitude versus lower magnitudes of the same reward, but each with a similar effort requirement. We discuss the strengths/limitations of these paradigms, and describe brain regions that have been probed that result in converging or equivocal findings. Results are also reviewed with reference to a need for future work, and the broader impacts and implications of studies probing the mechanisms of effort.
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Affiliation(s)
- Evan E Hart
- Department of Psychology, University of California at Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA.
| | - Alicia Izquierdo
- Department of Psychology, University of California at Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA; The Brain Research Institute, University of California at Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA; Integrative Center for Learning and Memory, University of California at Los Angeles, CA, USA; Integrative Center for Addictions, University of California at Los Angeles, CA, USA.
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Salamone JD, Correa M, Ferrigno S, Yang JH, Rotolo RA, Presby RE. The Psychopharmacology of Effort-Related Decision Making: Dopamine, Adenosine, and Insights into the Neurochemistry of Motivation. Pharmacol Rev 2019; 70:747-762. [PMID: 30209181 DOI: 10.1124/pr.117.015107] [Citation(s) in RCA: 69] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Effort-based decision making is studied using tasks that offer choices between high-effort options leading to more highly valued reinforcers versus low-effort/low-reward options. These tasks have been used to study the involvement of neural systems, including mesolimbic dopamine and related circuits, in effort-related aspects of motivation. Moreover, such tasks are useful as animal models of some of the motivational symptoms that are seen in people with depression, schizophrenia, Parkinson's disease, and other disorders. The present review will discuss the pharmacology of effort-related decision making and will focus on the use of these tasks for the development of drug treatments for motivational dysfunction. Research has identified pharmacological conditions that can alter effort-based choice and serve as models for depression-related symptoms (e.g., the vesicular monoamine transport-2 inhibitor tetrabenazine and proinflammatory cytokines). Furthermore, tests of effort-based choice have identified compounds that are particularly useful for stimulating high-effort work output and reversing the deficits induced by tetrabenazine and cytokines. These studies indicate that drugs that act by facilitating dopamine transmission, as well as adenosine A2A antagonists, are relatively effective at reversing effort-related impairments. Studies of effort-based choice may lead to the identification of drug targets that could be useful for treating motivational treatments that are resistant to commonly used antidepressants such as serotonin transport inhibitors.
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Affiliation(s)
- John D Salamone
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, Connecticut (J.D.S., S.F., J.-H.Y., R.A.R., R.E.P.); and Area de Psicobiologia, Universitat de Jaume I, Castelló, Spain (M.C.)
| | - Mercè Correa
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, Connecticut (J.D.S., S.F., J.-H.Y., R.A.R., R.E.P.); and Area de Psicobiologia, Universitat de Jaume I, Castelló, Spain (M.C.)
| | - Sarah Ferrigno
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, Connecticut (J.D.S., S.F., J.-H.Y., R.A.R., R.E.P.); and Area de Psicobiologia, Universitat de Jaume I, Castelló, Spain (M.C.)
| | - Jen-Hau Yang
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, Connecticut (J.D.S., S.F., J.-H.Y., R.A.R., R.E.P.); and Area de Psicobiologia, Universitat de Jaume I, Castelló, Spain (M.C.)
| | - Renee A Rotolo
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, Connecticut (J.D.S., S.F., J.-H.Y., R.A.R., R.E.P.); and Area de Psicobiologia, Universitat de Jaume I, Castelló, Spain (M.C.)
| | - Rose E Presby
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, Connecticut (J.D.S., S.F., J.-H.Y., R.A.R., R.E.P.); and Area de Psicobiologia, Universitat de Jaume I, Castelló, Spain (M.C.)
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Ferré S, Díaz-Ríos M, Salamone JD, Prediger RD. New Developments on the Adenosine Mechanisms of the Central Effects of Caffeine and Their Implications for Neuropsychiatric Disorders. J Caffeine Adenosine Res 2018; 8:121-131. [PMID: 30596206 PMCID: PMC6306650 DOI: 10.1089/caff.2018.0017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/05/2023] Open
Abstract
Recent studies on interactions between striatal adenosine and dopamine and one of its main targets, the adenosine A2A receptor–dopamine D2 receptor (A2AR–D2R) heteromer, have provided a better understanding of the mechanisms involved in the psychostimulant effects of caffeine and have brought forward new data on the mechanisms of operation of classical orthosteric ligands within G protein-coupled receptor heteromers. The striatal A2AR–D2R heteromer has a tetrameric structure and forms part of a signaling complex that includes a Gs and a Gi protein and the effector adenyl cyclase (subtype AC5). Another target of caffeine, the adenosine A1 receptor–dopamine D1 receptor (A1R–D1R) heteromer, seems to have a very similar structure. Initially suggested to be localized in the striatum, the A1R–D1R heteromer has now been identified in the spinal motoneuron and shown to mediate the spinally generated caffeine-induced locomotion. In this study, we review the recently discovered properties of A2AR–D2R and A1R–D1R heteromers. Our studies demonstrate that these complexes are a necessary condition to sustain the canonical antagonistic interaction between a Gs-coupled receptor (A2AR or D1R) and a Gi-coupled receptor (D2R or A1R) at the adenylyl cyclase level, which constitutes a new concept in the field of G protein-coupled receptor physiology and pharmacology. A2AR antagonists targeting the striatal A2AR–D2R heteromer are already being considered as therapeutic agents in Parkinson's disease. In this study, we review the preclinical evidence that indicates that caffeine and A2AR antagonists could be used to treat the motivational symptoms of depression and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, while A1R antagonists selectively targeting the spinal A1R–D1R heteromer could be used in the recovery of spinal cord injury.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sergi Ferré
- Integrative Neurobiology Section, National Institute on Drug Abuse, Intramural Research Program, National Institutes of Health, Baltimore, Maryland
| | - Manuel Díaz-Ríos
- Department of Anatomy and Neurobiology, Institute of Neurobiology, University of Puerto Rico, Medical Sciences Campus, San Juan, Puerto Rico
| | - John D Salamone
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, Connecticut
| | - Rui Daniel Prediger
- Department of Pharmacology, Federal University of Santa Catarina, Florianópolis, Brazil
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40
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Animal models of fatigue in major depressive disorder. Physiol Behav 2018; 199:300-305. [PMID: 30513290 DOI: 10.1016/j.physbeh.2018.11.042] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/17/2018] [Revised: 11/29/2018] [Accepted: 11/30/2018] [Indexed: 02/08/2023]
Abstract
Fatigue is common in a host of neurological and psychiatric disorders including depression and often continues unabated even after primary symptoms of disease are treated. Its high estimated prevalence combined with the lack of effective medicines has engaged the preclinical research community to search for fatigue models. The present review briefly summarizes the most common animal models that have been brought forward along with some of the associated pharmacological validation data. Like all preclinical models, these models have issues that need to be appreciated in the generation and interpretation of data for the purposes of translation to human disease; specifically, there are deficiencies in construct validity, a lack of medicines that effectively address residual fatigue symptoms, and difficulties in defining specificity with respect to drug effects on fatigue per se. Nonetheless, existing animal models of fatigue arguably serve the valuable purpose of encouraging research in this large area of unmet medical need. Data from these models are predicted to engender human experimentation and the further development of improved model systems.
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Felger JC. Imaging the Role of Inflammation in Mood and Anxiety-related Disorders. Curr Neuropharmacol 2018; 16:533-558. [PMID: 29173175 PMCID: PMC5997866 DOI: 10.2174/1570159x15666171123201142] [Citation(s) in RCA: 244] [Impact Index Per Article: 40.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/03/2017] [Revised: 10/23/2017] [Accepted: 11/21/2017] [Indexed: 02/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Background Studies investigating the impact of a variety of inflammatory stimuli on the brain and behavior have reported evidence that inflammation and release of inflammatory cytokines affect circuitry relevant to both reward and threat sensitivity to contribute to behavioral change. Of relevance to mood and anxiety-related disorders, biomarkers of inflammation such as inflammatory cytokines and acute-phase proteins are reliably elevated in a significant proportion of patients with major depressive disorder (MDD), bipolar disorder, anxiety disorders and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Methods This review summarized clinical and translational work demonstrating the impact of peripheral inflammation on brain regions and neurotransmitter systems relevant to both reward and threat sensitivity, with a focus on neuroimaging studies involving administration of inflammatory stimuli. Recent translation of these findings to further understand the role of inflammation in mood and anxiety-related disorders is also discussed. Results Inflammation was consistently found to affect basal ganglia and cortical reward and motor circuits to drive reduced motivation and motor activity, as well as anxiety-related brain regions including amygdala, insula and anterior cingulate cortex, which may result from cytokine effects on monoamines and glutamate. Similar relationships between inflammation and altered neurocircuitry have been observed in MDD patients with increased peripheral inflammatory markers, and such work is on the horizon for anxiety disorders and PTSD. Conclusion Neuroimaging effects of inflammation on reward and threat circuitry may be used as biomarkers of inflammation for future development of novel therapeutic strategies to better treat mood and anxiety-related disorders in patients with high inflammation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jennifer C Felger
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, United States.,Winship Cancer Institute, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, United States
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42
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Neurobiology and pharmacology of activational and effort-related aspects of motivation: rodent studies. Curr Opin Behav Sci 2018. [DOI: 10.1016/j.cobeha.2018.01.026] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/05/2023]
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43
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López-Cruz L, San Miguel N, Carratalá-Ros C, Monferrer L, Salamone JD, Correa M. Dopamine depletion shifts behavior from activity based reinforcers to more sedentary ones and adenosine receptor antagonism reverses that shift: Relation to ventral striatum DARPP32 phosphorylation patterns. Neuropharmacology 2018; 138:349-359. [PMID: 29408363 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropharm.2018.01.034] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/29/2017] [Revised: 01/18/2018] [Accepted: 01/24/2018] [Indexed: 01/18/2023]
Abstract
The mesolimbic dopamine (DA) system plays a critical role in behavioral activation and effort-based decision-making. DA depletion produces anergia (shifts to low effort options) in animals tested on effort-based decision-making tasks. Caffeine, the most consumed stimulant in the world, acts as an adenosine A1/A2A receptor antagonist, and in striatal areas DA D1 and D2 receptors are co-localized with adenosine A1 and A2A receptors respectively. In the present work, we evaluated the effect of caffeine on anergia induced by the VMAT-2 inhibitor tetrabenazine (TBZ), which depletes DA. Anergia was evaluated in a three-chamber T-maze task in which animals can chose between running on a wheel (RW) vs. sedentary activities such as consuming sucrose or sniffing a neutral odor. TBZ-caffeine interactions in ventral striatum were evaluated using DARPP-32 phosphorylation patterns as an intracellular marker of DA-adenosine receptor interaction. In the T-maze, control mice spent more time running and much less consuming sucrose or sniffing. TBZ (4.0 mg/kg) reduced ventral striatal DA tissue levels as measured by HPLC, and also shifted preferences in the T-maze, reducing selection of the reinforcer that involved vigorous activity (RW), but increasing consumption of a reinforcer that required little effort (sucrose), at doses that had no effect on independent measures of appetite or locomotion in a RW. Caffeine at doses that had no effect on their own reversed the effects of TBZ on T-maze performance, and also suppressed TBZ-induced pDARPP-32(Thr34) expression as measured by western blot, suggesting a role for D2-A2A interactions. These results support the idea that DA depletion produces anergia, but does not affect the primary motivational effects of sucrose. Caffeine, possibly by acting on A2A receptors in ventral striatum, reversed the DA depletion effects. It is possible that caffeine, like selective adenosine A2A antagonists, could have some therapeutic benefit for treating effort-related symptoms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laura López-Cruz
- Àrea de Psicobiologia, Campus de Riu Sec, Universitat Jaume I, 12071 Castelló, Spain
| | - Noemí San Miguel
- Àrea de Psicobiologia, Campus de Riu Sec, Universitat Jaume I, 12071 Castelló, Spain
| | - Carla Carratalá-Ros
- Àrea de Psicobiologia, Campus de Riu Sec, Universitat Jaume I, 12071 Castelló, Spain
| | - Lidón Monferrer
- Àrea de Didàctica Ciències Experimentals, Campus de Riu Sec, Universitat Jaume I, 12071 Castelló, Spain
| | - John D Salamone
- Behavioral Neuroscience Div., University of Connecticut, Storrs, 06269-1020 CT, USA
| | - Mercè Correa
- Àrea de Psicobiologia, Campus de Riu Sec, Universitat Jaume I, 12071 Castelló, Spain; Behavioral Neuroscience Div., University of Connecticut, Storrs, 06269-1020 CT, USA.
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López-Cruz L, Salamone JD, Correa M. Caffeine and Selective Adenosine Receptor Antagonists as New Therapeutic Tools for the Motivational Symptoms of Depression. Front Pharmacol 2018; 9:526. [PMID: 29910727 PMCID: PMC5992708 DOI: 10.3389/fphar.2018.00526] [Citation(s) in RCA: 67] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/19/2018] [Accepted: 05/01/2018] [Indexed: 01/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Major depressive disorder is one of the most common and debilitating psychiatric disorders. Some of the motivational symptoms of depression, such anergia (lack of self-reported energy) and fatigue are relatively resistant to traditional treatments such as serotonin uptake inhibitors. Thus, new pharmacological targets are being investigated. Epidemiological data suggest that caffeine consumption can have an impact on aspects of depressive symptomatology. Caffeine is a non-selective adenosine antagonist for A1/A2A receptors, and has been demonstrated to modulate behavior in classical animal models of depression. Moreover, selective adenosine receptor antagonists are being assessed for their antidepressant effects in animal studies. This review focuses on how caffeine and selective adenosine antagonists can improve different aspects of depression in humans, as well as in animal models. The effects on motivational symptoms of depression such as anergia, fatigue, and psychomotor slowing receive particular attention. Thus, the ability of adenosine receptor antagonists to reverse the anergia induced by dopamine antagonism or depletion is of special interest. In conclusion, although further studies are needed, it appears that caffeine and selective adenosine receptor antagonists could be therapeutic agents for the treatment of motivational dysfunction in depression.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laura López-Cruz
- Àrea de Psicobiologia, Universitat Jaume I, Castellón de la Plana, Spain
| | - John D. Salamone
- Behavioral Neuroscience Division, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, United States
| | - Mercè Correa
- Àrea de Psicobiologia, Universitat Jaume I, Castellón de la Plana, Spain
- Behavioral Neuroscience Division, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, United States
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SanMiguel N, Pardo M, Carratalá-Ros C, López-Cruz L, Salamone JD, Correa M. Individual differences in the energizing effects of caffeine on effort-based decision-making tests in rats. Pharmacol Biochem Behav 2018; 169:27-34. [PMID: 29655598 DOI: 10.1016/j.pbb.2018.04.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/03/2017] [Revised: 04/11/2018] [Accepted: 04/12/2018] [Indexed: 10/17/2022]
Abstract
Motivated behavior is characterized by activation and high work output. Nucleus accumbens (Nacb) modulates behavioral activation and effort-based decision-making. Caffeine is widely consumed because of its energizing properties. This methylxanthine is a non-selective adenosine A1/A2A receptor antagonist. Adenosine receptors are highly concentrated in Nacb. Adenosine agonists injected into Nacb, shift preference towards low effort alternatives. The present studies characterized effort-related effects of caffeine in a concurrent progressive ratio (PROG)/free reinforcer choice procedure that requires high levels of work output, and generates great variability among different animals. Male Sprague-Dawley rats received an acute dose of caffeine (2.5-20.0 mg/kg, IP) and 30 min later were tested in operant boxes. One group was food-restricted and had to lever pressed for high carbohydrate pellets, another group was non-food-restricted and lever pressed for a high sucrose solution. Caffeine (2.5 and 5.0 mg/kg) increased lever pressing in food-restricted animals that were already high responders. However, in non-restricted animals, caffeine (5.0 and 10.0 mg/kg) increased work output only among low responders. In fact, caffeine (10.0 and 20.0 mg/kg) in non-restricted animals, reduced lever pressing among high responders in the PROG task, and also in a different group of animals lever pressing in an easy task (fixed ratio 7 schedule) that uniformly generates high levels of responding. Caffeine did not modify sucrose preference or consumption under free access conditions. Thus, when animals do not have a homeostatic need, caffeine can help those not very intrinsically motivated to work harder for a more palatable reward. However, caffeine can disrupt performance of animals intrinsically motivated to work hard for a better reward.
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Affiliation(s)
- Noemí SanMiguel
- Àrea de Psicobiologia, Campus de Riu Sec, Universitat Jaume I, 12071 Castelló, Spain
| | - Marta Pardo
- Dept. of Neurology, University of Miami, Miller School of Medicine, Miami, FL 33136, USA
| | - Carla Carratalá-Ros
- Àrea de Psicobiologia, Campus de Riu Sec, Universitat Jaume I, 12071 Castelló, Spain
| | - Laura López-Cruz
- Àrea de Psicobiologia, Campus de Riu Sec, Universitat Jaume I, 12071 Castelló, Spain
| | - John D Salamone
- Behavioral Neuroscience Div., University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT 06269-1020, USA
| | - Mercè Correa
- Àrea de Psicobiologia, Campus de Riu Sec, Universitat Jaume I, 12071 Castelló, Spain.
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The monoamine-oxidase B inhibitor deprenyl increases selection of high-effort activity in rats tested on a progressive ratio/chow feeding choice procedure: Implications for treating motivational dysfunctions. Behav Brain Res 2018; 342:27-34. [DOI: 10.1016/j.bbr.2017.12.039] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/27/2017] [Revised: 12/12/2017] [Accepted: 12/28/2017] [Indexed: 01/14/2023]
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Salamone JD, Correa M, Yang JH, Rotolo R, Presby R. Dopamine, Effort-Based Choice, and Behavioral Economics: Basic and Translational Research. Front Behav Neurosci 2018; 12:52. [PMID: 29628879 PMCID: PMC5876251 DOI: 10.3389/fnbeh.2018.00052] [Citation(s) in RCA: 75] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/12/2017] [Accepted: 02/28/2018] [Indexed: 01/14/2023] Open
Abstract
Operant behavior is not only regulated by factors related to the quality or quantity of reinforcement, but also by the work requirements inherent in performing instrumental actions. Moreover, organisms often make effort-related decisions involving economic choices such as cost/benefit analyses. Effort-based decision making is studied using behavioral procedures that offer choices between high-effort options leading to relatively preferred reinforcers vs. low effort/low reward choices. Several neural systems, including the mesolimbic dopamine (DA) system and other brain circuits, are involved in regulating effort-related aspects of motivation. Considerable evidence indicates that mesolimbic DA transmission exerts a bi-directional control over exertion of effort on instrumental behavior tasks. Interference with DA transmission produces a low-effort bias in animals tested on effort-based choice tasks, while increasing DA transmission with drugs such as DA transport blockers tends to enhance selection of high-effort options. The results from these pharmacology studies are corroborated by the findings from recent articles using optogenetic, chemogenetic and physiological techniques. In addition to providing important information about the neural regulation of motivated behavior, effort-based choice tasks are useful for developing animal models of some of the motivational symptoms that are seen in people with various psychiatric and neurological disorders (e.g., depression, schizophrenia, Parkinson’s disease). Studies of effort-based decision making may ultimately contribute to the development of novel drug treatments for motivational dysfunction.
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Affiliation(s)
- John D Salamone
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, United States
| | - Merce Correa
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, United States.,Area de Psicobiologia, Universitat de Jaume I, Castelló, Spain
| | - Jen-Hau Yang
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, United States
| | - Renee Rotolo
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, United States
| | - Rose Presby
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, United States
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Contreras-Mora H, Rowland MA, Yohn SE, Correa M, Salamone JD. Partial reversal of the effort-related motivational effects of tetrabenazine with the MAO-B inhibitor deprenyl (selegiline): Implications for treating motivational dysfunctions. Pharmacol Biochem Behav 2018; 166:13-20. [DOI: 10.1016/j.pbb.2018.01.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/18/2017] [Revised: 12/29/2017] [Accepted: 01/04/2018] [Indexed: 12/30/2022]
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Yohn SE, Gorka D, Mistry A, Collins S, Qian E, Correa M, Manchanda A, Bogner RH, Salamone JD. Oral Ingestion and Intraventricular Injection of Curcumin Attenuates the Effort-Related Effects of the VMAT-2 Inhibitor Tetrabenazine: Implications for Motivational Symptoms of Depression. JOURNAL OF NATURAL PRODUCTS 2017; 80:2839-2844. [PMID: 28905625 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jnatprod.7b00425] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/07/2023]
Abstract
Effort-related choice tasks are used for studying depressive motivational symptoms such as anergia/fatigue. These studies investigated the ability of the dietary supplement curcumin to reverse the low-effort bias induced by the monoamine storage blocker tetrabenazine. Tetrabenazine shifted effort-related choice in rats, decreasing high-effort lever pressing but increasing chow intake. The effects of tetrabenazine were reversed by oral ingestion of curcumin (80.0-160.0 mg/kg) and infusions of curcumin into the cerebral ventricles (2.0-8.0 μg). Curcumin attenuates the effort-related effects of tetrabenazine in this model via actions on the brain, suggesting that curcumin may be useful for treating human motivational symptoms.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | | | - Merce Correa
- Àrea de Psicobiologia, Universitat Jaume I , Campus de Riu Sec, 12071 Castelló, Spain
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Assessment of a glycine uptake inhibitor in animal models of effort-related choice behavior: implications for motivational dysfunctions. Psychopharmacology (Berl) 2017; 234:1525-1534. [PMID: 28083675 DOI: 10.1007/s00213-016-4523-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/04/2016] [Accepted: 12/23/2016] [Indexed: 12/29/2022]
Abstract
RATIONALE Motivated behavior can be characterized by a substantial exertion of effort, and organisms often make effort-related decisions based upon analyses of work-related response costs and reinforcement preference. Moreover, alterations in effort-based choice can be seen in people with major depression and schizophrenia. Effort-related decision making is studied using tasks offering choices between high effort options leading to highly valued reinforces vs low effort/low reward options. Interference with dopamine (DA) transmission by administration of the DA D2 family antagonist haloperidol biases behavior towards the lower effort option that can be obtained with minimal work, and previous research has shown that DA interacts with other transmitters, including adenosine and GABA, to regulate effort-based choice. OBJECTIVES The present studies focused upon the ability of the glycine transport inhibitor bitopertin to attenuate haloperidol-induced shifts in effort-related choice behavior. METHODS Effort-based choice in rats was assessed using the concurrent fixed ratio (FR) 5/chow feeding choice task and the T-maze barrier choice procedure. RESULTS Haloperidol shifted effort-based choice, biasing animals towards the low effort option in each task. Co-administration of bitopertin (1.0-10.0 mg/kg) significantly attenuated haloperidol-induced shifts in choice behavior, but the same doses of bitopertin had no effect when administered alone. CONCLUSIONS These results indicated that elevation of extracellular glycine via inhibition of glycine uptake was able to reverse the effects of D2 antagonism. Increases in extracellular glycine, possibly through actions on the glycine allosteric site on the NMDA receptor, may be a useful strategy for treating motivational dysfunctions in humans.
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