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Johansen AN, Acuff SF, Strickland JC. Human laboratory models of reward in substance use disorder. Pharmacol Biochem Behav 2024; 241:173803. [PMID: 38843997 DOI: 10.1016/j.pbb.2024.173803] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/02/2024] [Revised: 04/30/2024] [Accepted: 06/01/2024] [Indexed: 06/15/2024]
Abstract
Human laboratory models in substance use disorder provide a key intermediary step between highly controlled and mechanistically informative non-human preclinical methods and clinical trials conducted in human populations. Much like preclinical models, the variety of human laboratory methods provide insights into specific features of substance use disorder rather than modelling the diverse causes and consequences simultaneously in a single model. This narrative review provides a discussion of popular models of reward used in human laboratory research on substance use disorder with a focus on the specific contributions that each model has towards informing clinical outcomes (forward translation) and analogs within preclinical models (backward translation). Four core areas of human laboratory research are discussed: drug self-administration, subjective effects, behavioral economics, and cognitive and executive function. Discussion of common measures and models used, the features of substance use disorder that these methods are purported to evaluate, unique issues for measure validity and application, and translational links to preclinical models and special considerations for studies wishing to evaluate homology across species is provided.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Samuel F Acuff
- Recovery Research Institute, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Justin C Strickland
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, 5510 Nathan Shock Drive, Baltimore, MD 21224, USA.
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West R, Cox S, Notley CJ, Du Plessis G, Hastings J. Achieving consensus, coherence, clarity and consistency when talking about addiction. Addiction 2024; 119:796-798. [PMID: 37985001 DOI: 10.1111/add.16393] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/17/2023] [Accepted: 10/30/2023] [Indexed: 11/22/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Robert West
- Department of Behavioural Science and Health, University College London, London, UK
| | - Sharon Cox
- Department of Behavioural Science and Health, University College London, London, UK
| | | | - Guy Du Plessis
- I-System Institute for Transdisciplinary Studies, Utah State University, Logan, Utah, USA
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Ahn S, Zou H, Seamans JK, Phillips AG. Differential patterns of basal and naloxone-evoked dopamine efflux in the rat dorsal and ventral striatum following prolonged-intermittent exposure to morphine. Eur J Neurosci 2024; 59:1067-1078. [PMID: 37985418 DOI: 10.1111/ejn.16192] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/26/2023] [Revised: 10/25/2023] [Accepted: 10/27/2023] [Indexed: 11/22/2023]
Abstract
Hypodopaminergia in the ventral striatum is a putative neurobiological correlate of withdrawal in opioid-dependent individuals. This perspective stands in contrast to brain imaging studies with chronic opioid users showing that naloxone-enhanced dopamine (DA) release in the dorsal striatum is positively correlated with withdrawal aversion. Here, we examined regional differences in striatal DA function associated with opioid withdrawal in rats exposed to intermittent morphine injections for 31 days. Basal concentrations of DA were reduced (i.e., indicating a hypodopaminergic state) in the ventral striatum on Day 10 of morphine exposure, whereas a more prolonged period of morphine treatment was required to reveal hypodopaminergia in the dorsal striatum on Day 31. The ventral striatum consistently exhibited naloxone-induced transient reductions in DA below the hypodopaminergic basal levels, whereas morphine enhanced DA efflux. In the dorsal striatum, DA responsivity to naloxone shifted from a significant decrease on Day 10 to a notable increase above hypodopaminergic basal levels on Day 31, corroborating the findings in the human dorsal striatum. Unexpectedly, the magnitude of morphine-evoked increases in DA efflux on Day 31 was significantly blunted relative to values on Day 10. These findings indicate that prolonged-intermittent access to morphine results in a sustained hypodopaminergic state as reflected in basal levels in the striatum, which is accompanied by regional differences in DA responsivity to naloxone and morphine. Overall, our findings suggest that prolonging the duration of morphine exposure to 31 days is sufficient to reveal neuroadaptations that may underlie the transition from initial drug exposure to opioid dependence.
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Affiliation(s)
- Soyon Ahn
- Djavad Mowafaghian Centre for Brain Health and Department of Psychiatry, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
| | - Haiyan Zou
- Djavad Mowafaghian Centre for Brain Health and Department of Psychiatry, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
| | - Jeremy K Seamans
- Djavad Mowafaghian Centre for Brain Health and Department of Psychiatry, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
| | - Anthony G Phillips
- Djavad Mowafaghian Centre for Brain Health and Department of Psychiatry, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
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Siemsen BM, Denton AR, Parrila-Carrero J, Hooker KN, Carpenter EA, Prescot ME, Brock AG, Westphal AM, Leath MN, McFaddin JA, Jhou TC, McGinty JF, Scofield MD. Heroin Self-Administration and Extinction Increase Prelimbic Cortical Astrocyte-Synapse Proximity and Alter Dendritic Spine Morphometrics That Are Reversed by N-Acetylcysteine. Cells 2023; 12:1812. [PMID: 37508477 PMCID: PMC10378353 DOI: 10.3390/cells12141812] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/16/2023] [Revised: 05/09/2023] [Accepted: 07/06/2023] [Indexed: 07/30/2023] Open
Abstract
Clinical and preclinical studies indicate that adaptations in corticostriatal neurotransmission significantly contribute to heroin relapse vulnerability. In animal models, heroin self-administration and extinction produce cellular adaptations in both neurons and astrocytes within the nucleus accumbens (NA) core that are required for cue-induced heroin seeking. Specifically, decreased glutamate clearance and reduced association of perisynaptic astrocytic processes with NAcore synapses allow glutamate release from prelimbic (PrL) cortical terminals to engage synaptic and structural plasticity in NAcore medium spiny neurons. Normalizing astrocyte glutamate homeostasis with drugs like the antioxidant N-acetylcysteine (NAC) prevents cue-induced heroin seeking. Surprisingly, little is known about heroin-induced alterations in astrocytes or pyramidal neurons projecting to the NAcore in the PrL cortex (PrL-NAcore). Here, we observe functional adaptations in the PrL cortical astrocyte following heroin self-administration (SA) and extinction as measured by the electrophysiologically evoked plasmalemmal glutamate transporter 1 (GLT-1)-dependent current. We likewise observed the increased complexity of the glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) cytoskeletal arbor and increased association of the astrocytic plasma membrane with synaptic markers following heroin SA and extinction training in the PrL cortex. Repeated treatment with NAC during extinction reversed both the enhanced astrocytic complexity and synaptic association. In PrL-NAcore neurons, heroin SA and extinction decreased the apical tuft dendritic spine density and enlarged dendritic spine head diameter in male Sprague-Dawley rats. Repeated NAC treatment during extinction prevented decreases in spine density but not dendritic spine head expansion. Moreover, heroin SA and extinction increased the co-registry of the GluA1 subunit of AMPA receptors in both the dendrite shaft and spine heads of PrL-NAcore neurons. Interestingly, the accumulation of GluA1 immunoreactivity in spine heads was further potentiated by NAC treatment during extinction. Finally, we show that the NAC treatment and elimination of thrombospondin 2 (TSP-2) block cue-induced heroin relapse. Taken together, our data reveal circuit-level adaptations in cortical dendritic spine morphology potentially linked to heroin-induced alterations in astrocyte complexity and association at the synapses. Additionally, these data demonstrate that NAC reverses PrL cortical heroin SA-and-extinction-induced adaptations in both astrocytes and corticostriatal neurons.
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Affiliation(s)
- Benjamin M. Siemsen
- Department of Anesthesia and Perioperative Medicine, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC 29425, USA
| | - Adam R. Denton
- Department of Anesthesia and Perioperative Medicine, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC 29425, USA
- Department of Neuroscience, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC 29425, USA
| | | | - Kaylee N. Hooker
- Department of Anesthesia and Perioperative Medicine, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC 29425, USA
| | - Eilish A. Carpenter
- Department of Anesthesia and Perioperative Medicine, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC 29425, USA
| | - Meagan E. Prescot
- Department of Anesthesia and Perioperative Medicine, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC 29425, USA
| | - Ashley G. Brock
- Department of Anesthesia and Perioperative Medicine, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC 29425, USA
| | - Annaka M. Westphal
- Department of Neuroscience, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC 29425, USA
| | - Mary-Nan Leath
- Department of Anesthesia and Perioperative Medicine, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC 29425, USA
| | - John A. McFaddin
- Department of Anesthesia and Perioperative Medicine, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC 29425, USA
| | - Thomas C. Jhou
- Department of Neuroscience, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC 29425, USA
| | - Jacqueline F. McGinty
- Department of Neuroscience, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC 29425, USA
| | - Michael D. Scofield
- Department of Anesthesia and Perioperative Medicine, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC 29425, USA
- Department of Neuroscience, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC 29425, USA
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Carmon H, Haley EC, Parikh V, Tronson NC, Sarter M. Neuro-Immune Modulation of Cholinergic Signaling in an Addiction Vulnerability Trait. eNeuro 2023; 10:ENEURO.0023-23.2023. [PMID: 36810148 PMCID: PMC9997697 DOI: 10.1523/eneuro.0023-23.2023] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/20/2023] [Accepted: 02/14/2023] [Indexed: 02/23/2023] Open
Abstract
Sign-tracking (ST) describes the propensity to approach and contact a Pavlovian reward cue. By contrast, goal-trackers (GTs) respond to such a cue by retrieving the reward. These behaviors index the presence of opponent cognitive-motivational traits, with STs exhibiting attentional control deficits, behavior dominated by incentive motivational processes, and vulnerability for addictive drug taking. Attentional control deficits in STs were previously attributed to attenuated cholinergic signaling, resulting from deficient translocation of intracellular choline transporters (CHTs) into synaptosomal plasma membrane. Here, we investigated a posttranslational modification of CHTs, poly-ubiquitination, and tested the hypothesis that elevated cytokine signaling in STs contributes to CHT modification. We demonstrated that intracellular CHTs, but not plasma membrane CHTs, are highly ubiquitinated in male and female sign-tracking rats when compared with GTs. Moreover, levels of cytokines measured in cortex and striatum, but not spleen, were higher in STs than in GTs. Activation of the innate immune system by systemic administration of the bacterial endotoxin lipopolysaccharide (LPS) elevated ubiquitinated CHT levels in cortex and striatum of GTs only, suggesting ceiling effects in STs. In spleen, LPS increased levels of most cytokines in both phenotypes. In cortex, LPS particularly robustly increased levels of the chemokines CCL2 and CXCL10. Phenotype-specific increases were restricted to GTs, again suggesting ceiling effects in STs. These results indicate that interactions between elevated brain immune modulator signaling and CHT regulation are essential components of the neuronal underpinnings of the addiction vulnerability trait indexed by sign-tracking.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hanna Carmon
- Department of Psychology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109
| | - Evan C Haley
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, Temple University, Philadelphia, PA 19122
| | - Vinay Parikh
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, Temple University, Philadelphia, PA 19122
| | - Natalie C Tronson
- Department of Psychology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience Program, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109
| | - Martin Sarter
- Department of Psychology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience Program, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109
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Qin M, Guan J, Huang Y, Lin H, Cui D, Yao T, Tian C, Wong M, Shi Z, Yuan T. A novel model of drug cue-induced behaviours in rhesus macaque subjected to chronic ketamine exposure. Gen Psychiatr 2023; 36:e100902. [PMID: 36760345 PMCID: PMC9884838 DOI: 10.1136/gpsych-2022-100902] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/02/2022] [Accepted: 01/09/2023] [Indexed: 01/28/2023] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Meng Qin
- Beijing Advanced Innovation Center for Soft Matter Science and Engineering, College of Life Science and Technology, Beijing University of Chemical Technology, Beijing, China
| | - Jiaoqiong Guan
- Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, Guangzhou First People’s Hospital, School of Medicine, South China University of Technology School of Medicine, Guangzhou, Guangdong, China,Shanghai Key Laboratory of Psychotic Disorders, Brain Health Institute, National Center for Mental Disorders, Shanghai Mental Health Center, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China
| | - Yichun Huang
- Beijing Advanced Innovation Center for Soft Matter Science and Engineering, College of Life Science and Technology, Beijing University of Chemical Technology, Beijing, China
| | - He Lin
- The Third Research Institute of Ministry of Public Security, Shanghai, China
| | - Ding Cui
- Department of Neurosciences, Laboratory for Neuro- and Psychophysiology, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Tao Yao
- Department of Neurosciences, Laboratory for Neuro- and Psychophysiology, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Chaoyang Tian
- Key Laboratory of Biomedical Engineering of Hainan Province, School of Biomedical Engineering, Hainan University, Haikou, Hainan, China
| | - Mali Wong
- Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, SUNY Upstate Medical University, Syracuse, New York, USA
| | - Zhe Shi
- Key Laboratory for Quality Evaluation of Bulk Herbs of Hunan Province, Hunan University of Chinese Medicine, Changsha, Hunan, China
| | - Tifei Yuan
- Shanghai Key Laboratory of Psychotic Disorders, Brain Health Institute, National Center for Mental Disorders, Shanghai Mental Health Center, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China,Co-innovation Center of Neuroregeneration, Nantong University, Nantong, Jiangsu, China
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Lovinger DM, Gremel CM. A Circuit-Based Information Approach to Substance Abuse Research. Trends Neurosci 2021; 44:122-135. [PMID: 33168235 PMCID: PMC7856012 DOI: 10.1016/j.tins.2020.10.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/05/2020] [Revised: 08/31/2020] [Accepted: 10/07/2020] [Indexed: 01/25/2023]
Abstract
Recent animal research on substance-use disorders (SUDs) has emphasized learning models and the identification of 'addiction-prone' animals. Meanwhile, basic neuroscientific research has elucidated molecular, cellular, and circuit functions with increasing sophistication. However, SUD-related research is hampered by continued arguments over which animal models are more 'addiction like', as well as the facile assignment of behaviors to a given brain region and vice versa. We argue that SUD-related research would benefit from a 'bottom-up' approach including: (i) the characterization of different brain circuits to understand their normal function as well as how they respond to drugs and contribute to SUDs; and (ii) a focus on the use patterns and neurobiological effects of different substances to understand the range of critical SUD-related in vivo phenotypes.
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Affiliation(s)
- David M Lovinger
- Laboratory for Integrative Neuroscience, National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, Bethesda, MD, USA.
| | - Christina M Gremel
- Department of Psychology, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
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Nonhuman animal models of substance use disorders: Translational value and utility to basic science. Drug Alcohol Depend 2020; 206:107733. [PMID: 31790978 PMCID: PMC6980671 DOI: 10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2019.107733] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/11/2019] [Revised: 11/10/2019] [Accepted: 11/11/2019] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) recently released a Request for Information (RFI) soliciting comments on nonhuman animal models of substance use disorders (SUD). METHODS A literature review was performed to address the four topics outlined in the RFI and one topic inspired by the RFI: (1) animal models that best recapitulate SUD, (2) animal models that best balance the trade-offs between resources and ecological validity, (3) animal models whose translational value are frequently misrepresented or overrepresented by the scientific community, (4) aspects of SUD that are not currently being modeled in animals, and (5) animal models that are optimal for examining the basic mechanisms by which drugs produce their abuse-related effects. RESULTS Models that employ response-contingent drug administration, use complex schedules of reinforcement, measure behaviors that mimic the distinguishing features of SUD, and use animals that are phylogenetically similar to humans have the greatest translational value. Models that produce stable and reproducible baselines of behavior, lessen the number of uncontrolled variables, and minimize the influence of extraneous factors are best at examining basic mechanisms contributing to drug reward and reinforcement. CONCLUSIONS Nonhuman animal models of SUD have undergone significant refinements to increase their utility for basic science and translational value for SUD. The existing literature describes numerous examples of how these models may best be utilized to answer mechanistic questions of drug reward and identify potential therapeutic interventions for SUD. Progress in the field could be accelerated by further collaborations between researchers using animals versus humans.
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Lamontagne SJ, Melendez SI, Olmstead MC. Investigating dopamine and glucocorticoid systems as underlying mechanisms of anhedonia. Psychopharmacology (Berl) 2018; 235:3103-3113. [PMID: 30136143 DOI: 10.1007/s00213-018-5007-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/02/2018] [Accepted: 08/16/2018] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
Abstract
RATIONALE Anhedonia, a deficit in reward processing, is an endophenotype of several neuropsychiatric conditions. Despite its prevalence and debilitating effects, treatments for anhedonia are lacking, primarily because its underlying mechanisms are poorly understood. Dopamine (DA) has been implicated in anhedonia through its role in reward-related learning; glucocorticoid systems may also be involved in that anhedonia is often preceded by chronic stress. OBJECTIVE This study investigated DA and glucocorticoid systems in anhedonia using a rat version of the probabilistic reward task (PRT). METHODS Adult male Wistar rats were trained on the PRT and then tested following: (1) activation or inhibition of DA activity induced by amphetamine (AMPH) or pramipexole (PRAMI) injections, (2) chronic mild stress (CMS), or (3) glucocorticoid system activation (dexamethasone (DEX)) or inhibition (mifepristone (MIFE)). RESULTS AMPH increased and PRAMI decreased response bias, pointing to enhanced and diminished reward responsiveness with DA agonism and antagonism, respectively. CMS reduced response bias but only in a subpopulation of rats. DEX also decreased response bias, suggesting that glucocorticoid processes contribute to anhedonia, although glucocorticoid inhibition (MIFE) had no effect. None of the manipulations altered the ability to detect and respond to reward-paired stimuli. CONCLUSIONS These results confirm a role of DA in anhedonia and elucidate the contribution of the glucocorticoid system to this effect. In addition, chronic stress may interfere with normal DA functioning, leading to impaired reward-related learning in some animals. These findings may direct future treatment of anhedonia by targeting DA and glucocorticoid systems, as well as a possible interaction between the two.
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Affiliation(s)
- Steven J Lamontagne
- Department of Psychology, Queens University, 62 Arch St., Kingston, ON, K7L 3N6, Canada
| | - Sofia I Melendez
- Department of Psychology, Queens University, 62 Arch St., Kingston, ON, K7L 3N6, Canada
| | - Mary C Olmstead
- Department of Psychology, Queens University, 62 Arch St., Kingston, ON, K7L 3N6, Canada. .,Centre for Neuroscience Studies, Queen's University, Kingston, ON, K7L 3N6, Canada.
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