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Maddux JM, Gonzales L, Kregar NP. β2* nicotinic acetylcholine receptor subtypes mediate nicotine-induced enhancement of Pavlovian conditioned responding to an alcohol cue. Front Behav Neurosci 2022; 16:1004368. [PMCID: PMC9596985 DOI: 10.3389/fnbeh.2022.1004368] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/27/2022] [Accepted: 09/21/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Nicotine enhances Pavlovian conditioned responses to reward-associated cues. We investigated through which nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (nAChR) subtypes nicotine acts to produce this behavioral effect to an alcohol-associated cue. Male Long-Evans rats with freely available food and water were first accustomed to drinking 15% ethanol in their home cages using an intermittent access, two-bottle choice procedure. Then the rats were given 15 Pavlovian conditioning sessions in which a 15-s audiovisual conditioned stimulus (CS) predicted the delivery of 0.2 ml of ethanol, the unconditioned stimulus (US). Each session contained 12 CS-US trials. A control group received explicitly unpaired presentations of the CS and US. We measured Pavlovian conditioned approach to the site of US delivery during presentations of the CS, accounting for pre-CS baseline activity. Before each conditioning session, rats were injected subcutaneously with nicotine (0.4 mg/kg) or saline (1 ml/kg). During nAChR antagonist test sessions, rats were first injected systemically with the β2*-selective nAChR antagonist dihydro-beta-erythroidine (DHβE; 3 mg/kg) or the α7-selective nAChR antagonist methyllycaconitine (MLA; 6 mg/kg), followed by their assigned nicotine or saline injection before assessing their conditioned response to the alcohol-associated cue. Consistent with previous reports, nicotine enhanced the Pavlovian conditioned response to the alcohol-paired cue. DHβE attenuated this enhancement, whereas MLA did not. These results suggest that nicotine acts via β2*, but not α7, nAChRs to amplify Pavlovian conditioned responding to an alcohol cue. These findings contribute to a growing literature that identifies nAChRs as potential targets for pharmacological treatment of co-morbid alcohol and tobacco use disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jean-Marie Maddux
- Department of Psychology, Lake Forest College, Lake Forest, IL, United States
- Neuroscience Program, Lake Forest College, Lake Forest, IL, United States
- *Correspondence: Jean-Marie Maddux
| | - Leslie Gonzales
- Department of Psychology, Lake Forest College, Lake Forest, IL, United States
- Neuroscience Program, Lake Forest College, Lake Forest, IL, United States
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McGrath-Morrow SA, Gorzkowski J, Groner JA, Rule AM, Wilson K, Tanski SE, Collaco JM, Klein JD. The Effects of Nicotine on Development. Pediatrics 2020; 145:peds.2019-1346. [PMID: 32047098 PMCID: PMC7049940 DOI: 10.1542/peds.2019-1346] [Citation(s) in RCA: 68] [Impact Index Per Article: 17.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 08/05/2019] [Indexed: 01/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Recently, there has been a significant increase in the use of noncombustible nicotine-containing products, including electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes). Of increasing popularity are e-cigarettes that can deliver high doses of nicotine over short periods of time. These devices have led to a rise in nicotine addiction in adolescent users who were nonsmokers. Use of noncombustible nicotine products by pregnant mothers is also increasing and can expose the developing fetus to nicotine, a known teratogen. In addition, young children are frequently exposed to secondhand and thirdhand nicotine aerosols generated by e-cigarettes, with little understanding of the effects these exposures can have on health. With the advent of these new nicotine-delivery systems, many concerns have arisen regarding the short- and long-term health effects of nicotine on childhood health during all stages of development. Although health studies on nicotine exposure alone are limited, educating policy makers and health care providers on the potential health effects of noncombustible nicotine is needed because public acceptance of these products has become so widespread. Most studies evaluating the effects of nicotine on health have been undertaken in the context of smoke exposure. Nevertheless, in vitro and in vivo preclinical studies strongly indicate that nicotine exposure alone can adversely affect the nervous, respiratory, immune, and cardiovascular systems, particularly when exposure occurs during critical developmental periods. In this review, we have included both preclinical and clinical studies to identify age-related health effects of nicotine exposure alone, examining the mechanisms underlying these effects.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sharon A. McGrath-Morrow
- Julius B. Richmond Center of Excellence, American Academy of Pediatrics, Itasca, Illinois;,Eudowood Division of Pediatric Respiratory Sciences, Department of Pediatrics, School of Medicine and
| | - Julie Gorzkowski
- Julius B. Richmond Center of Excellence, American Academy of Pediatrics, Itasca, Illinois
| | - Judith A. Groner
- Julius B. Richmond Center of Excellence, American Academy of Pediatrics, Itasca, Illinois;,Department of Pediatrics, Nationwide Children’s Hospital, Columbus, Ohio
| | - Ana M. Rule
- Julius B. Richmond Center of Excellence, American Academy of Pediatrics, Itasca, Illinois;,Department of Environmental Health and Engineering, Bloomberg School of Public Health, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland
| | - Karen Wilson
- Julius B. Richmond Center of Excellence, American Academy of Pediatrics, Itasca, Illinois;,Department of Pediatrics, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai and Kravis Children’s Hospital, New York, New York
| | - Susanne E. Tanski
- Julius B. Richmond Center of Excellence, American Academy of Pediatrics, Itasca, Illinois;,Department of Pediatrics, Geisel School of Medicine, Dartmouth College, Lebanon, New Hampshire; and
| | - Joseph M. Collaco
- Julius B. Richmond Center of Excellence, American Academy of Pediatrics, Itasca, Illinois;,Eudowood Division of Pediatric Respiratory Sciences, Department of Pediatrics, School of Medicine and
| | - Jonathan D. Klein
- Julius B. Richmond Center of Excellence, American Academy of Pediatrics, Itasca, Illinois;,Department of Pediatrics, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, Illinois
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Meyer HC, Bucci DJ. Setting the occasion for adolescent inhibitory control. Neurobiol Learn Mem 2017; 143:8-17. [PMID: 27864087 PMCID: PMC5432413 DOI: 10.1016/j.nlm.2016.11.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/09/2016] [Revised: 11/08/2016] [Accepted: 11/14/2016] [Indexed: 11/15/2022]
Abstract
During adolescence, individuals experience a broad range of dynamic environments as they strive to establish independence. Learning to respond appropriately in both new and previously encountered environments requires that an individual identify and learn the meaning of cues indicating that a behavior is appropriate, or alternatively, that it should be altered or inhibited. Although the ability to regulate goal-directed behavior continues to develop across adolescence, the specific circumstances under which adolescents experience difficulty with inhibitory control remain unclear. Here we review recent findings in our laboratory that address how adolescents learn to proactively inhibit a response. Much of our research has utilized a negative occasion setting paradigm, in which one cue (a feature) gates the meaning of a second cue (a target). The feature provides information that resolves the ambiguity of the target and indicates the appropriate behavioral response to the target. As such, we have been able to determine how adolescents learn about ambiguous stimuli, such as those whose meaning changes in accordance with other features of the surrounding environment. We consider why adolescents in particular exhibit difficulty in negative occasion setting compared to either pre-adolescents or adults. In addition, we review findings indicating that a balance in neural activity between orbitofrontal cortex and nucleus accumbens is necessary to support normal negative occasion setting. Finally, we consider aspects of associative learning that may contribute to adolescent inhibitory control, as well as provide insight into adolescent behavior as a whole.
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Affiliation(s)
- Heidi C Meyer
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH 03755, United States.
| | - David J Bucci
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH 03755, United States
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