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Petersen N, Adank DN, Quan Y, Edwards CM, Hallal SD, Taylor A, Winder DG, Doyle MA. A Novel Mouse Home Cage Lickometer System Reveals Sex- and Housing-Based Influences on Alcohol Drinking. eNeuro 2024; 11:ENEURO.0234-24.2024. [PMID: 39317464 DOI: 10.1523/eneuro.0234-24.2024] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/03/2024] [Revised: 08/04/2024] [Accepted: 09/04/2024] [Indexed: 09/26/2024] Open
Abstract
Alcohol use disorder (AUD) is a significant global health issue. Despite historically higher rates among men, AUD prevalence and negative alcohol-related outcomes in women are rising. Loneliness in humans has been associated with increased alcohol use, and traditional rodent drinking models involve single housing, presenting challenges for studying social enrichment. We developed LIQ PARTI (Lick Instance Quantifier with Poly-Animal RFID Tracking Integration), an open-source tool to examine home cage continuous access two-bottle choice drinking behavior in a group-housed setting, investigating the influence of sex and social isolation on ethanol consumption and bout microstructure in C57Bl/6J mice. LIQ PARTI, based on our previously developed single-housed LIQ HD system, accurately tracks drinking behavior using capacitive-based sensors and RFID technology. Group-housed female mice exhibited higher ethanol preference than males, while males displayed a unique undulating pattern of ethanol preference linked to cage changes, suggesting a potential stress or novelty-related response. Chronic ethanol intake distinctly altered bout microstructure between male and female mice, highlighting sex and social environmental influences on drinking behavior. Social isolation with the LIQ HD system amplified fluid intake and ethanol preference in both sexes, accompanied by sex- and fluid-dependent changes in bout microstructure. However, these effects largely reversed upon resocialization, indicating the plasticity of these behaviors in response to social context. Utilizing a novel group-housed home cage lickometer device, our findings illustrate the critical interplay of sex and housing conditions in voluntary alcohol drinking behaviors in C57Bl/6J mice, facilitating nuanced insights into the potential contributions to AUD etiology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nicholas Petersen
- Vanderbilt Brain Institute, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, Tennessee 37232
- Vanderbilt Center for Addiction Research, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, Tennessee 37232
- Department of Molecular Physiology and Biophysics, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, Tennessee 37232
| | - Danielle N Adank
- Vanderbilt Brain Institute, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, Tennessee 37232
- Vanderbilt Center for Addiction Research, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, Tennessee 37232
- Department of Molecular Physiology and Biophysics, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, Tennessee 37232
- Department of Neurobiology, UMass Chan Medical School, Worcester, Massachusetts 01655
| | - Yizhen Quan
- Vanderbilt Center for Addiction Research, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, Tennessee 37232
| | - Caitlyn M Edwards
- Vanderbilt Brain Institute, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, Tennessee 37232
- Vanderbilt Center for Addiction Research, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, Tennessee 37232
- Department of Molecular Physiology and Biophysics, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, Tennessee 37232
- Department of Neurobiology, UMass Chan Medical School, Worcester, Massachusetts 01655
| | - Sabrina D Hallal
- Department of Neurobiology, UMass Chan Medical School, Worcester, Massachusetts 01655
| | - Anne Taylor
- Vanderbilt Brain Institute, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, Tennessee 37232
- Vanderbilt Center for Addiction Research, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, Tennessee 37232
- Department of Molecular Physiology and Biophysics, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, Tennessee 37232
| | - Danny G Winder
- Vanderbilt Brain Institute, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, Tennessee 37232
- Vanderbilt Center for Addiction Research, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, Tennessee 37232
- Department of Molecular Physiology and Biophysics, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, Tennessee 37232
- Department of Neurobiology, UMass Chan Medical School, Worcester, Massachusetts 01655
| | - Marie A Doyle
- Vanderbilt Brain Institute, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, Tennessee 37232
- Vanderbilt Center for Addiction Research, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, Tennessee 37232
- Department of Molecular Physiology and Biophysics, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, Tennessee 37232
- Department of Neurobiology, UMass Chan Medical School, Worcester, Massachusetts 01655
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2
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D'Aquila PS. Licking microstructure in response to novel rewards, reward devaluation and dopamine antagonists: Possible role of D1 and D2 medium spiny neurons in the nucleus accumbens. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2024; 165:105861. [PMID: 39159734 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2024.105861] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/03/2024] [Revised: 07/29/2024] [Accepted: 08/16/2024] [Indexed: 08/21/2024]
Abstract
Evidence on the effect of dopamine D1 and D2-like antagonists and of manipulations of reward value on licking microstructure is reanalysed considering recent findings on the role of nucleus accumbens (NAc) medium spiny neurons (MSNs) in the control of sugar intake. The results of this analysis suggest that D1 MSN activation, which is involved in the emission of licking bursts, might play a crucial role in response to novel rewards. D2 MSN activation, which results in reduction of burst size and suppression of licking, might mediate the response to reward devaluation. Elucidating the neural mechanisms underlying the licking response might lead to a better definition of its microstructural measures in behaviourally and psychologically meaningful functional terms. This could further support its use as a behavioural substrate in the study of the neural mechanisms of ingestive behaviour and motivation, as well as in animal models of pathological conditions such as eating disorders and obesity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Paolo S D'Aquila
- Dipartimento di Scienze Biomediche, Università di Sassari, Viale S. Pietro 43/b, Sassari 07100, Italy.
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3
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Petersen N, Adank DN, Quan Y, Edwards CM, Taylor A, Winder DG, Doyle MA. A novel mouse home cage lickometer system reveals sex- and housing-based influences on alcohol drinking. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2024:2024.05.22.595186. [PMID: 38826244 PMCID: PMC11142211 DOI: 10.1101/2024.05.22.595186] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/04/2024]
Abstract
Alcohol use disorder (AUD) is a significant global health issue. Despite historically higher rates among men, AUD prevalence and negative alcohol-related outcomes in women are rising. Loneliness in humans has been associated with increased alcohol use, and traditional rodent drinking models involve single housing, presenting challenges for studying social enrichment. We developed LIQ PARTI (Lick Instance Quantifier with Poly-Animal RFID Tracking Integration), an open-source tool to examine home cage continuous access two-bottle choice drinking behavior in a group-housed setting, investigating the influence of sex and social isolation on ethanol consumption and bout microstructure in C57Bl/6J mice. LIQ PARTI, based on our previously developed single-housed LIQ HD system, accurately tracks drinking behavior using capacitive-based sensors and RFID technology. Group-housed female mice exhibited higher ethanol preference than males, while males displayed a unique undulating pattern of ethanol preference linked to cage changes, suggesting a potential stress-related response. Chronic ethanol intake distinctly altered bout microstructure between male and female mice, highlighting sex and social environmental influences on drinking behavior. Social isolation with the LIQ HD system amplified fluid intake and ethanol preference in both sexes, accompanied by sex- and fluid-dependent changes in bout microstructure. However, these effects largely reversed upon resocialization, indicating the plasticity of these behaviors in response to social context. Utilizing a novel group-housed home cage lickometer device, our findings illustrate the critical interplay of sex and housing conditions in voluntary alcohol drinking behaviors in C57Bl/6J mice, facilitating nuanced insights into the potential contributions to AUD etiology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nicholas Petersen
- Vanderbilt Brain Institute, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, TN, 37232
- Vanderbilt Center for Addiction Research, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, TN, 37232
- Department of Molecular Physiology and Biophysics, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, TN, 37232
| | - Danielle N. Adank
- Vanderbilt Brain Institute, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, TN, 37232
- Vanderbilt Center for Addiction Research, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, TN, 37232
- Department of Molecular Physiology and Biophysics, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, TN, 37232
- Department of Neurobiology, UMass Chan Medical School, Worcester, MA, 01655
| | - Yizhen Quan
- Vanderbilt Center for Addiction Research, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, TN, 37232
| | - Caitlyn M. Edwards
- Vanderbilt Brain Institute, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, TN, 37232
- Vanderbilt Center for Addiction Research, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, TN, 37232
- Department of Molecular Physiology and Biophysics, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, TN, 37232
- Department of Neurobiology, UMass Chan Medical School, Worcester, MA, 01655
| | - Anne Taylor
- Vanderbilt Brain Institute, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, TN, 37232
- Vanderbilt Center for Addiction Research, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, TN, 37232
- Department of Molecular Physiology and Biophysics, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, TN, 37232
| | - Danny G. Winder
- Vanderbilt Brain Institute, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, TN, 37232
- Vanderbilt Center for Addiction Research, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, TN, 37232
- Department of Molecular Physiology and Biophysics, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, TN, 37232
- Department of Neurobiology, UMass Chan Medical School, Worcester, MA, 01655
| | - Marie A. Doyle
- Vanderbilt Brain Institute, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, TN, 37232
- Vanderbilt Center for Addiction Research, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, TN, 37232
- Department of Molecular Physiology and Biophysics, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, TN, 37232
- Department of Neurobiology, UMass Chan Medical School, Worcester, MA, 01655
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4
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Lockwood DR, Cassell JA, Smith JC, Houpt TA. Patterns of ingestion of rats during chronic oral administration of lithium chloride. Physiol Behav 2024; 275:114454. [PMID: 38161042 PMCID: PMC10878199 DOI: 10.1016/j.physbeh.2023.114454] [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: 11/01/2023] [Revised: 12/12/2023] [Accepted: 12/29/2023] [Indexed: 01/03/2024]
Abstract
Chronic lithium administration to rodents is used to explore the potential neural mechanisms of mood stabilization, as well as to model the side effects of chronic lithium on multiple organ systems. Oral administration of lithium in the maintenance diet or drinking water is convenient, but lithium can acutely affect intake and it can mediate acquisition of conditioned taste aversions (CTA). We compared ad libitum food and fluid intake by male rats with LiCl or NaCl solutions as their sole source of fluid across 20 days, with a commonly used dosage of LiCl (24 mM: 1 g / L LiCl). To quantify the pattern of intake, rats were housed in cages equipped with lickometers to detect licks and infrared photobeams to detect food access with 6-s resolution. To determine if rats formed a CTA to LiCl, they were subsequently tested with access to NaCl. Rats showed an immediate avoidance of the LiCl solution, as seen on the first day of access by an increased latency to initiate drinking and a decreased size of drinking bouts. Rats showed a differential response to LiCl vs. NaCl after as few as 5 licks. Chronic consumption of LiCl solution led to significantly decreased food and fluid intake compared to baseline, with concomitant weight loss. The decreased intake was realized by marked changes in the pattern of drinking and feeding bouts: a decrease in per-lick volume and a decrease in licks per drinking bout, and an increase in feeding bout duration resulting in an overall decrease in eating rate. Conversely, chronic NaCl access led to an increase in drinking bout number and licks/bout. The avoidance of LiCl was likely a combination of toxic effects of ingested LiCl and rapid acquisition of a learned aversion to the taste of LiCl, as shown by an extinguishable generalized aversion to NaCl solution during subsequent NaCl test days. The marked effect of chronic oral LiCl on ingestion may impact the oral dosing of lithium as well as the rat's metabolic status.
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Affiliation(s)
- Denesa R Lockwood
- Department of Biological Science, Program in Neuroscience, Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL 32306-4295, United States
| | - Jennifer A Cassell
- Department of Biological Science, Program in Neuroscience, Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL 32306-4295, United States
| | - James C Smith
- Department of Psychology, Program in Neuroscience, Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL 32306-4295, United States
| | - Thomas A Houpt
- Department of Biological Science, Program in Neuroscience, Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL 32306-4295, United States.
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5
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Starski PA, De Oliveira Sergio T, Hopf FW. Using lickometry to infer differential contributions of salience network regions during compulsion-like alcohol drinking. ADDICTION NEUROSCIENCE 2023; 7:100102. [PMID: 38736902 PMCID: PMC11086682 DOI: 10.1016/j.addicn.2023.100102] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/14/2024]
Abstract
Alcohol use disorder extracts substantial personal, social and clinical costs, and continued intake despite negative consequences (compulsion-like consumption) can contribute strongly. Here we discuss lickometry, a simple method where lick times are determined across a session, while analysis across many aspects of licking can offer important insights into underlying psychological and action strategies, including their brain mechanisms. We first describe studies implicating anterior insula (AIC) and dorsal medial prefrontal cortex (dMPF) in compulsion-like responding for alcohol, then review work suggesting that AIC/ventral frontal cortex versus dMPF regulate different aspects of behavior (oral control and overall response strategy, versus moment-to-moment action organization). We then detail our lickometer work comparing alcohol-only drinking (AOD) and compulsion-like drinking under moderate- or higher-challenge (ModChD or HiChD, using quinine-alcohol). Many studies have suggested utilization of one of two main strategies, with higher motivation indicated by more bouts, and greater palatability suggested by longer, faster bouts. Instead, ModChD shows decreased variability in many lick measures, which is unexpected but consistent with the suggested importance of automaticity for addiction. Also surprising is that HiChD retains several behavior changes seen with ModChD, reduced tongue variability and earlier bout start, even though intake is otherwise disrupted. Since AIC-related measures are retained under both moderate- and higher-challenge, we propose a novel hypothesis that AIC sustains overall commitment regardless of challenge level, while disordered licking during HiChD mirrors the effects of dMPF inhibition. Thus, while AIC provides overall drive despite challenge, the ability to act is ultimately determined within the dMPF.
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Affiliation(s)
- Phillip A. Starski
- Indiana University School of Medicine, Department of Psychiatry, Indianapolis IN, USA
| | | | - Frederic W. Hopf
- Indiana University School of Medicine, Department of Psychiatry, Indianapolis IN, USA
- Stark Neurosciences Research Institute, Indianapolis IN, USA
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Petersen N, Adank DN, Raghavan R, Winder DG, Doyle MA. LIQ HD (Lick Instance Quantifier Home Cage Device): An Open-Source Tool for Recording Undisturbed Two-Bottle Drinking Behavior in a Home Cage Environment. eNeuro 2023; 10:ENEURO.0506-22.2023. [PMID: 36997312 PMCID: PMC10112549 DOI: 10.1523/eneuro.0506-22.2023] [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: 12/16/2022] [Revised: 03/05/2023] [Accepted: 03/24/2023] [Indexed: 04/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Investigation of rodent drinking behavior has provided insight into drivers of thirst, circadian rhythms, anhedonia, and drug and ethanol consumption. Traditional methods of recording fluid intake involve weighing bottles, which is cumbersome and lacks temporal resolution. Several open-source devices have been designed to improve drink monitoring, particularly for two-bottle choice tasks. However, beam-break sensors lack the ability to detect individual licks for bout microstructure analysis. Thus, we designed LIQ HD (Lick Instance Quantifier Home cage Device) with the goal of using capacitive sensors to increase accuracy and analyze lick microstructure, building a device compatible with ventilated home cages, increasing scale with prolonged undisturbed recordings, and creating a design that is easy to build and use with an intuitive touchscreen graphical user interface. The system tracks two-bottle choice licking behavior in up to 18 rodent cages, or 36 single bottles, on a minute-to-minute timescale controlled by a single Arduino microcontroller. The data are logged to a single SD card, allowing for efficient downstream analysis. LIQ HD accuracy was validated with sucrose, quinine, and ethanol two-bottle choice tasks. The system measures preference over time and changes in bout microstructure, with undisturbed recordings tested up to 7 d. All designs and software are open-source to allow other researchers to build on the system and adapt LIQ HD to their animal home cages.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nicholas Petersen
- Vanderbilt Brain Institute, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, TN 37232
- Vanderbilt Center for Addiction Research, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, TN 37232
- Department of Molecular Physiology and Biophysics, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, TN 37232
| | - Danielle N Adank
- Vanderbilt Brain Institute, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, TN 37232
- Vanderbilt Center for Addiction Research, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, TN 37232
- Department of Molecular Physiology and Biophysics, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, TN 37232
| | - Ritika Raghavan
- Vanderbilt Brain Institute, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, TN 37232
- Vanderbilt Center for Addiction Research, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, TN 37232
- Department of Molecular Physiology and Biophysics, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, TN 37232
| | - Danny G Winder
- Vanderbilt Brain Institute, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, TN 37232
- Vanderbilt Center for Addiction Research, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, TN 37232
- Department of Molecular Physiology and Biophysics, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, TN 37232
- Department of Pharmacology, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, TN 37232
| | - Marie A Doyle
- Vanderbilt Brain Institute, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, TN 37232
- Vanderbilt Center for Addiction Research, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, TN 37232
- Department of Molecular Physiology and Biophysics, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, TN 37232
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Sandoval-Rodríguez R, Parra-Reyes JA, Han W, Rueda-Orozco PE, Perez IO, de Araujo IE, Tellez LA. D1 and D2 neurons in the nucleus accumbens enable positive and negative control over sugar intake in mice. Cell Rep 2023; 42:112190. [PMID: 36857179 PMCID: PMC10154129 DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2023.112190] [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: 05/09/2022] [Revised: 11/21/2022] [Accepted: 02/14/2023] [Indexed: 03/02/2023] Open
Abstract
Although the consumption of carbohydrates is needed for survival, their potent reinforcing properties drive obesity worldwide. In turn, sugar overconsumption reveals a major role for brain reward systems in regulating sugar intake. However, it remains elusive how different cell types within the reward circuitries control the initiation and termination of sugary meals. Here, we identified the distinct nucleus accumbens cell types that mediate the chemosensory versus postprandial properties of sweet sugars. Specifically, D1 neurons enhance sugar intake via specialized connections to taste ganglia, whereas D2 neurons mediate the termination of sugary meals via anatomical connections to circuits involved in appetite suppression. Consistently, D2, but not D1, neurons partially mediate the satiating effects of glucagon-like peptide 1 (GLP-1) agonists. Thus, these nucleus accumbens cell types function as a behavioral switch, enabling positive versus negative control over sugar intake. Our study contributes to unveiling the cellular and circuit substrates of sugar overconsumption.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rafael Sandoval-Rodríguez
- Department of Behavioral and Cognitive Neurobiology, Institute of Neurobiology, UNAM, Campus Juriquilla, Queretaro 76230, Mexico
| | - Jenifer Alejandra Parra-Reyes
- Department of Behavioral and Cognitive Neurobiology, Institute of Neurobiology, UNAM, Campus Juriquilla, Queretaro 76230, Mexico
| | - Wenfei Han
- Department of Neuroscience, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
| | - Pavel E Rueda-Orozco
- Department of Developmental Neurobiology and Neurophysiology, Institute of Neurobiology, UNAM, Campus Juriquilla, Queretaro 76230, Mexico
| | - Isaac O Perez
- Section of Neurobiology of Oral Sensations, CUSI Almaraz, FES-Iztacala, UNAM, Mexico 54714, Mexico
| | - Ivan E de Araujo
- Department of Neuroscience, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA; Diabetes, Obesity and Metabolism Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
| | - Luis A Tellez
- Department of Behavioral and Cognitive Neurobiology, Institute of Neurobiology, UNAM, Campus Juriquilla, Queretaro 76230, Mexico.
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Stone BT, Lin JY, Mahmood A, Sanford AJ, Katz DB. LiCl-induced sickness modulates rat gustatory cortical responses. PLoS Biol 2022; 20:e3001537. [PMID: 35877759 PMCID: PMC9352195 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pbio.3001537] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/30/2021] [Revised: 08/04/2022] [Accepted: 06/29/2022] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Gustatory cortex (GC), a structure deeply involved in the making of consumption decisions, presumably performs this function by integrating information about taste, experiences, and internal states related to the animal's health, such as illness. Here, we investigated this assertion, examining whether illness is represented in GC activity, and how this representation impacts taste responses and behavior. We recorded GC single-neuron activity and local field potentials (LFPs) from healthy rats and rats made ill (via LiCl injection). We show (consistent with the extant literature) that the onset of illness-related behaviors arises contemporaneously with alterations in 7 to 12 Hz LFP power at approximately 12 min following injection. This process was accompanied by reductions in single-neuron taste response magnitudes and discriminability, and with enhancements in palatability-relatedness-a result reflecting the collapse of responses toward a simple "good-bad" code visible in the entire sample, but focused on a specific subset of GC neurons. Overall, our data show that a state (illness) that profoundly reduces consumption changes basic properties of the sensory cortical response to tastes, in a manner that can easily explain illness' impact on consumption.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bradly T. Stone
- Graduate Program in Neuroscience, Brandeis University, Waltham, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - Jian-You Lin
- Department of Psychology, Neuroscience Program, and Volen National Center for Complex Systems, Brandeis University, Waltham, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - Abuzar Mahmood
- Graduate Program in Neuroscience, Brandeis University, Waltham, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - Alden J. Sanford
- Department of Psychology, Neuroscience Program, and Volen National Center for Complex Systems, Brandeis University, Waltham, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - Donald B. Katz
- Graduate Program in Neuroscience, Brandeis University, Waltham, Massachusetts, United States of America
- Department of Psychology, Neuroscience Program, and Volen National Center for Complex Systems, Brandeis University, Waltham, Massachusetts, United States of America
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9
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Ramos R, Wu CH, Turrigiano GG. Strong Aversive Conditioning Triggers a Long-Lasting Generalized Aversion. Front Cell Neurosci 2022; 16:854315. [PMID: 35295904 PMCID: PMC8918528 DOI: 10.3389/fncel.2022.854315] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/13/2022] [Accepted: 02/11/2022] [Indexed: 11/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Generalization is an adaptive mnemonic process in which an animal can leverage past learning experiences to navigate future scenarios, but overgeneralization is a hallmark feature of anxiety disorders. Therefore, understanding the synaptic plasticity mechanisms that govern memory generalization and its persistence is an important goal. Here, we demonstrate that strong CTA conditioning results in a long-lasting generalized aversion that persists for at least 2 weeks. Using brain slice electrophysiology and activity-dependent labeling of the conditioning-active neuronal ensemble within the gustatory cortex, we find that strong CTA conditioning induces a long-lasting increase in synaptic strengths that occurs uniformly across superficial and deep layers of GC. Repeated exposure to salt, the generalized tastant, causes a rapid attenuation of the generalized aversion that correlates with a reversal of the CTA-induced increases in synaptic strength. Unlike the uniform strengthening that happens across layers, reversal of the generalized aversion results in a more pronounced depression of synaptic strengths in superficial layers. Finally, the generalized aversion and its reversal do not impact the acquisition and maintenance of the aversion to the conditioned tastant (saccharin). The strong correlation between the generalized aversion and synaptic strengthening, and the reversal of both in superficial layers by repeated salt exposure, strongly suggests that the synaptic changes in superficial layers contribute to the formation and reversal of the generalized aversion. In contrast, the persistence of synaptic strengthening in deep layers correlates with the persistence of CTA. Taken together, our data suggest that layer-specific synaptic plasticity mechanisms separately govern the persistence and generalization of CTA memory.
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10
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Flores-Bonilla A, De Oliveira B, Silva-Gotay A, Lucier KW, Richardson HN. Shortening time for access to alcohol drives up front-loading behavior, bringing consumption in male rats to the level of females. Biol Sex Differ 2021; 12:51. [PMID: 34526108 PMCID: PMC8444481 DOI: 10.1186/s13293-021-00395-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/10/2021] [Accepted: 08/31/2021] [Indexed: 11/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Incentives to promote drinking (“happy hour”) can encourage faster rates of alcohol consumption, especially in women. Sex differences in drinking dynamics may underlie differential health vulnerabilities relating to alcohol in women versus men. Herein, we used operant procedures to model the happy hour effect and gain insight into the alcohol drinking dynamics of male and female rats. Methods Adult male and female Wistar rats underwent operant training to promote voluntary drinking of 10% (w/v) alcohol (8 rats/sex). We tested how drinking patterns changed after manipulating the effort required for alcohol (fixed ratio, FR), as well as the length of time in which rats had access to alcohol (self-administration session length). Rats were tested twice within the 12 h of the dark cycle, first at 2 h (early phase of the dark cycle, “early sessions”) and then again at 10 h into the dark cycle (late phase of the dark cycle, “late sessions”) with an 8-h break between the two sessions in the home cage. Results Adult females consumed significantly more alcohol (g/kg) than males in the 30-min sessions with the FR1 schedule of reinforcement when tested late in the dark cycle. Front-loading of alcohol was the primary factor driving higher consumption in females. Changing the schedule of reinforcement from FR1 to FR3 reduced total consumption. Notably, this manipulation had minimal effect on front-loading behavior in females, whereas front-loading behavior was significantly reduced in males when more effort was required to access alcohol. Compressing drinking access to 15 min to model a happy hour drove up front-loading behavior, generating alcohol drinking patterns in males that were similar to patterns in females (faster drinking and higher intake). Conclusions This strategy could be useful for exploring sex differences in the neural mechanisms underlying alcohol drinking and related health vulnerabilities. Our findings also highlight the importance of the time of testing for detecting sex differences in drinking behavior. Voluntary alcohol drinking is higher in adult female rats compared to adult male rats. This sex difference is most pronounced in the later phase of the dark cycle, and when the operant effort is minimal (when 1 lever press gives 1 reward: fixed ratio 1, FR1). Higher alcohol intake in females is primarily due to “front-loading”, or the rapid consumption of alcohol within the first 5 min of access. Increasing the effort required to obtain alcohol from FR1 to FR3 dampens front-loading drinking behavior, resulting in similar levels of total intake in males and females. Compressing the time of access to 15 min drives up front-loading to such a degree that rats end up consuming more alcohol in total than they do in 30-min sessions. In males, this increase in drinking is large enough that it eliminates the sex difference in total alcohol intake.
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Affiliation(s)
- Annabelle Flores-Bonilla
- Neuroscience and Behavior Program, The University of Massachusetts Amherst, Amherst, MA, 01003, USA.,Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, The University of Massachusetts Amherst, Amherst, MA, 01003, USA
| | - Barbara De Oliveira
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, The University of Massachusetts Amherst, Amherst, MA, 01003, USA
| | - Andrea Silva-Gotay
- Neuroscience and Behavior Program, The University of Massachusetts Amherst, Amherst, MA, 01003, USA.,Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, The University of Massachusetts Amherst, Amherst, MA, 01003, USA
| | - Kyle W Lucier
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, The University of Massachusetts Amherst, Amherst, MA, 01003, USA
| | - Heather N Richardson
- Neuroscience and Behavior Program, The University of Massachusetts Amherst, Amherst, MA, 01003, USA. .,Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, The University of Massachusetts Amherst, Amherst, MA, 01003, USA.
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Har-Paz I, Arieli E, Moran A. ApoE4 attenuates cortical neuronal activity in young behaving apoE4 rats. Neurobiol Dis 2021; 155:105373. [PMID: 33932558 DOI: 10.1016/j.nbd.2021.105373] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/31/2021] [Revised: 04/19/2021] [Accepted: 04/26/2021] [Indexed: 10/21/2022] Open
Abstract
The E4 allele of apolipoprotein E (apoE4) is the strongest genetic risk factor for late-onset Alzheimer's disease (AD). However, apoE4 may cause innate brain abnormalities before the appearance of AD-related neuropathology. Understanding these primary dysfunctions is vital for the early detection of AD and the development of therapeutic strategies. Recently we reported impaired extra-hippocampal memory in young apoE4 mice, a deficit that was correlated with attenuated structural pre-synaptic plasticity in cortical and subcortical regions. Here we tested the hypothesis that these early structural deficits impact learning via changes in basal and stimuli evoked neuronal activity. We recorded extracellular neuronal activity from the gustatory cortex (GC) of three-month-old humanized apoE4 (hApoE4) and wildtype rats expressing rat apoE (rAE), before and after conditioned taste aversion (CTA) training. Despite normal sucrose drinking behavior before CTA, young hApoE4 rats showed impaired CTA learning, consistent with our previous results in target-replacement apoE4 mice. This behavioral deficit was correlated with decreased basal and taste-evoked firing rates in both putative excitatory and inhibitory GC neurons. Further taste coding analyses at the single neuron and ensemble levels revealed that GC neurons of the hApoE4 group correctly classified tastes, but were unable to undergo plasticity to support learning. These results suggest that apoE4 impacts brain excitability and plasticity early in life that may act as an initiator for later AD pathologies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ilona Har-Paz
- Sagol School of Neuroscience, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 6997801, Israel
| | - Elor Arieli
- Department of Neurobiology, The School of Neurobiology, Biochemistry and Biophysics, The George S. Wise Faculty of Life Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 6997801, Israel
| | - Anan Moran
- Department of Neurobiology, The School of Neurobiology, Biochemistry and Biophysics, The George S. Wise Faculty of Life Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 6997801, Israel; Sagol School of Neuroscience, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 6997801, Israel.
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12
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D'Aquila PS, Galistu A. Further characterization of the effect of the prototypical antidepressant imipramine on the microstructure of licking for sucrose. PLoS One 2021; 16:e0245559. [PMID: 33449955 PMCID: PMC7810301 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0245559] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/19/2020] [Accepted: 01/04/2021] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
We previously reported that treatment with the prototypical antidepressant imipramine induced a dose-dependent reduction of the ingestion of a 10% sucrose solution, due to reduction of the licking burst number, thus suggesting reduced motivation and/or increased satiation. Importantly, the experimental sessions were performed in an alternate order, either 1-h or 24-h after imipramine administration. The observation that imipramine effect was more pronounced in the “1-h after-treatment” sessions, i.e. at the time of the brain drug Cmax, led us to suggest that it was likely related to brain drug levels at testing time. However, such an experimental design does not allow to rule out the alternative possibility that the observed effect might be due to post-session administration, as previously observed with memantine. To determine whether imipramine-induced decrease of sucrose ingestion could be observed even in absence of post-session administration, we examined the effect of a daily 22 day treatment with imipramine (5, 10 and 20 mg/kg). In the first half of the treatment period all behavioural tests were performed 1-h after administration. In the second half of the treatment period, tests were performed alternatively either 1-h or 24-h after imipramine administration. The results confirm that imipramine reduces sucrose ingestion due to a reduction of the licking burst number. Most importantly, these results demonstrate that this effect does not require imipramine post-session administration, since it was present before the beginning of post-session administrations. This supports the interpretation of the reduction of sucrose ingestion as a consequence of reduced motivation and/or increased satiation. Thus, these findings, taken together with the results of our previous study, might be relevant in explaining the effects of imipramine in models of drug-seeking and in body weight gain reduction in rats, but not in accounting for the antidepressant therapeutic effect. At variance with the results of our previous study, an increase in burst size was present in the first half of the treatment period, which might be interpreted as a prohedonic effect and/or as a compensatory effect.
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Affiliation(s)
- Paolo S. D'Aquila
- Dipartimento di Scienze Biomediche, Università di Sassari, Sassari, Italy
- * E-mail:
| | - Adriana Galistu
- Dipartimento di Scienze Biomediche, Università di Sassari, Sassari, Italy
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Pittman DW, Dong G, Brantly AM, He L, Nelson TS, Kogan S, Powell J, McCluskey LP. Behavioral and neurophysiological taste responses to sweet and salt are diminished in a model of subclinical intestinal inflammation. Sci Rep 2020; 10:17611. [PMID: 33077838 PMCID: PMC7573616 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-74632-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/17/2020] [Accepted: 10/05/2020] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
There is strong evidence for gut-taste bud interactions that influence taste function, behavior and feeding. However, the effect of gut inflammation on this axis is unknown despite reports of taste changes in gastrointestinal (GI) inflammatory conditions. Lipopolysaccharide (LPS), an inflammatory stimulus derived from gram-negative bacteria, is present in the normal GI tract and levels increase during high-fat feeding and gut infection and inflammation. Recordings from the chorda tympani nerve (CT), which transmits taste information from taste buds on the anterior tongue to the brain, previously revealed a transient decrease in sucrose responses in mice that ingest LPS during a single overnight period. Here we test the effect of acute or chronic, weekly LPS gavage on licking behavior and CT responses. Using brief-access testing, rats treated with acute LPS and mice receiving acute or chronic LPS decreased licking responses to sucrose and saccharin and to NaCl in mice. In long-term (23 h) tests chronic LPS also reduced licking responses to saccharin, sucrose, and NaCl in mice. Neurophysiological recordings from the CT supported behavioral changes, demonstrating reduced responses to sucrose, saccharin, acesulfame potassium, glucose and NaCl in acute and chronic LPS groups compared to controls. Chronic LPS significantly elevated neutrophils in the small intestine and colon, but LPS was not detected in serum and mice did not display sickness behavior or lose weight. These results indicate that sweet and salt taste sensitivity could be reduced even in asymptomatic or mild localized gut inflammatory conditions such as inflammatory bowel disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- David W Pittman
- Department of Psychology, Wofford College, Spartanburg, SC, USA
| | - Guangkuo Dong
- Department of Neuroscience and Regenerative Medicine, Medical College of Georgia at Augusta University, 1120 15th Street/CA-3016, Augusta, GA, 30912, USA
| | | | - Lianying He
- Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC, USA
| | - Tyler S Nelson
- Department of Psychology, Wofford College, Spartanburg, SC, USA
| | - Schuyler Kogan
- Department of Neuroscience and Regenerative Medicine, Medical College of Georgia at Augusta University, 1120 15th Street/CA-3016, Augusta, GA, 30912, USA
| | - Julia Powell
- Department of Neuroscience and Regenerative Medicine, Medical College of Georgia at Augusta University, 1120 15th Street/CA-3016, Augusta, GA, 30912, USA
| | - Lynnette Phillips McCluskey
- Department of Neuroscience and Regenerative Medicine, Medical College of Georgia at Augusta University, 1120 15th Street/CA-3016, Augusta, GA, 30912, USA.
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Microstructure analysis of sucrose ingestion in the course of chronic treatment with imipramine. Physiol Behav 2020; 224:113032. [PMID: 32598942 DOI: 10.1016/j.physbeh.2020.113032] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/06/2020] [Revised: 05/22/2020] [Accepted: 06/24/2020] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
The analysis of licking microstructure provides measures which might be interpreted in terms of psychological constructs, such as pleasure and motivation, relevant for the interpretation of the effects of antidepressant drugs. The aim of this study was to characterise the effect of the prototypical antidepressant imipramine on the microstructure of licking for a 10% sucrose solution. In particular, ten 30-min sessions were performed in the course of a daily 21 day treatment with imipramine - 5, 10 and 20 mg/kg/die administered intraperitoneally. To interpret drug effects in relation to the presumed concentration of imipramine and its active metabolite desipramine, the experimental sessions were performed in an alternate order either 1-h or 24-h after imipramine administration. In the sessions performed 1-h after drug administration, the results showed a dose-dependent reduction of sucrose ingestion, accounted for by a reduction of the licking burst number. Moreover, reduced intra-burst lick rate and increased latency to lick were observed with the highest doses. Imipramine effect in the sessions performed 24-h after drug administration was similar but less pronounced. These results are consistent with the hypothesis that the reduction of sucrose ingestion might be due to reduced motivation and/or to a potentiation of satiety signals. These effects appear to be related, at least in part, to brain drug levels at testing time, and do not seem related to the mechanisms underlying the antidepressant therapeutic effect. However, these results might be relevant in explaining the effects of imipramine in models of drug-seeking and on body weight.
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Daily memantine treatment blunts hedonic response to sucrose in rats. Psychopharmacology (Berl) 2020; 237:103-114. [PMID: 31414153 DOI: 10.1007/s00213-019-05348-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/27/2019] [Accepted: 08/09/2019] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
RATIONALE Preclinical and clinical studies suggest the potential use of memantine in the treatment of binge eating disorder. The aim of this study was to further investigate the mechanisms by which memantine influences the motivational aspects of ingestion through the analysis of licking microstructure. To interpret treatment effects in relation to drug action at specific functionally relevant times, we compared the effect of two different administration schedules. METHODS Memantine was administered daily for a week, either 1 h before or immediately after a 30-min daily session. The effects on the microstructure of licking for a 10% sucrose solution in rats were examined in the course of treatment and for 15 days after treatment discontinuation. RESULTS Treatment before testing reduced ingestion due to reduced burst size and increased latency in the first session. However, a progressive increase in burst number across sessions led to a full recovery of ingestion levels by the end of treatment. Daily post-session administration induced a dramatic decrease of activation of licking behaviour, indicated by reduced burst number, accompanied to reduced burst size. A slow recovery of ingestion took place after treatment discontinuation. CONCLUSION These results suggest a reduced hedonic/reward evaluation response, an effect likely due to NMDA receptor blockade occurring during the testing time and support the hypothesis that memantine interferes with the hedonic/non-homeostatic mechanisms regulating food intake and food-seeking. The effect of post-session administration might be explained by the development of conditioned taste aversion.
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16
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D'Aquila PS, Elia D, Galistu A. Role of dopamine D 1-like and D 2-like receptors in the activation of ingestive behaviour in thirsty rats licking for water. Psychopharmacology (Berl) 2019; 236:3497-3512. [PMID: 31273401 DOI: 10.1007/s00213-019-05317-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/07/2019] [Accepted: 06/30/2019] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
Abstract
RATIONALE Analysis of lick pattern for sucrose and NaCl and of the forced swimming response after dopamine antagonist administration led us to suggest that dopamine on D1-like receptors is involved in behavioural activation, and the level of activation is "reboosted" on the basis of an evaluation process involving D2-like receptors. Although some studies investigated licking microstructure for water after dopamine antagonists, the within-session time course of their effect was never investigated. OBJECTIVES The aims of this study were to further investigate the role of dopamine receptors in the mechanisms governing water ingestion, focussing on the within-session time course of the microstructure parameters, and to test the proposed hypothesis. MATERIALS AND METHODS The effects of the dopamine D1-like receptor antagonist SCH 23390 (0.01-0.04 mg/kg) and of the dopamine D2-like receptor antagonist raclopride (0.025-0.25 mg/kg) on licking microstructure for water were examined in 20-h water-deprived rats in 30-min sessions. RESULTS As previously observed with sucrose and NaCl, SCH 23390 reduced licking by reducing burst number, suggesting reduced behavioural activation. Moreover, it resulted in an increased burst size. Raclopride reduced the size of licking bursts, while their number was either increased or decreased depending on the dose. CONCLUSION The results support the suggestion that D1 receptors are involved in behavioural activation and D2 receptors are involved in a related evaluation process. Within the framework of the proposed hypothesis, the increased burst size after D1-like receptor blockade might be interpreted as a pro-hedonic effect consequent to the increased cost of the activation of the licking response.
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Affiliation(s)
- Paolo S D'Aquila
- Dipartimento di Scienze Biomediche, Università di Sassari, Viale San Pietro 43/b, 07100, Sassari, Italy.
| | - Domenico Elia
- Dipartimento di Scienze Biomediche, Università di Sassari, Viale San Pietro 43/b, 07100, Sassari, Italy
| | - Adriana Galistu
- Dipartimento di Scienze Biomediche, Università di Sassari, Viale San Pietro 43/b, 07100, Sassari, Italy
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Naneix F, Peters KZ, McCutcheon JE. Investigating the Effect of Physiological Need States on Palatability and Motivation Using Microstructural Analysis of Licking. Neuroscience 2019; 447:155-166. [PMID: 31682949 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroscience.2019.10.036] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/04/2019] [Revised: 10/20/2019] [Accepted: 10/21/2019] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
The study of consummatory responses during food intake represents a unique opportunity to investigate the physiological, psychological and neurobiological processes that control ingestive behavior. Recording the occurrence and temporal organization of individual licks across consumption, also called lickometry, yields a rich data set that can be analyzed to dissect consummatory responses into different licking patterns. These patterns, divided into trains of licks separated by pauses, have been used to deconstruct the many influences on consumption, such as palatability evaluation, incentive properties, and post-ingestive processes. In this review, we describe commonly used definitions of licking patterns and how various studies have defined and measured these. We then discuss how licking patterns can be used to investigate the impact of different physiological need states on processes governing ingestive behavior. We also present new data showing how licking patterns are changed in an animal model of protein appetite and how this may guide food choice in different protein-associated hedonic and homeostatic states. Thus, recording lick microstructure can be achieved relatively easily and represents a useful tool to provide insights, beyond the measurement of total intake, into the multiple factors influencing ingestive behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fabien Naneix
- Dept. of Neuroscience, Psychology & Behaviour, University of Leicester, Leicester, UK
| | - Kate Z Peters
- Dept. of Anatomy and Neurobiology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - James E McCutcheon
- Dept. of Neuroscience, Psychology & Behaviour, University of Leicester, Leicester, UK; Dept. of Psychology, UiT The Arctic University of Norway, Tromsø, Norway.
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18
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The Basolateral Nucleus of the Amygdala Executes the Parallel Processes of Avoidance and Palatability in the Retrieval of Conditioned Taste Aversion in Male Rats. eNeuro 2019; 6:ENEURO.0004-19.2019. [PMID: 31235467 PMCID: PMC6620391 DOI: 10.1523/eneuro.0004-19.2019] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/04/2019] [Revised: 04/03/2019] [Accepted: 04/26/2019] [Indexed: 12/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Conditioned taste aversion (CTA) is an essential behavior for animal survival. Conditioned animals show avoidance and decreased palatability to a conditioned stimulus (CS) on CTA retrieval. In this study, we aimed to determine whether the basolateral nucleus of the amygdala (BLA) is involved in CTA retrieval and whether avoidance and palatability in CTA retrieval are processed in the BLA. We developed an experimental chamber for time-course analysis of the behavior to approach a spout and lick a CS. In this experimental chamber, we analyzed the behavior of male rats following microinjections of GABAA receptor agonist muscimol or saline into the BLA. The rats showed two types of approach behavior: they either (1) approached and licked the spout or (2) approached but did not lick the spout. Muscimol injection into the BLA decreased the frequency of the latter type of approach behavior, indicating that BLA inactivation reduced avoidance to the CS. The muscimol injection into the BLA also significantly increased the consumption of the CS. Lick microstructure analysis demonstrated that intra-BLA muscimol significantly increased licking burst number and size, indicating that BLA inactivation attenuated aversion to the CS as large burst licking is an indicator of high palatability. These results suggest that the increase in CS consumption with intra-BLA muscimol injection was due to alterations in approach and aversive responses to the CS. Therefore, we conclude that the BLA plays an essential role in CTA retrieval by parallel processing of avoidance and palatability.
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19
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Schier LA, Hyde KM, Spector AC. Conditioned taste aversion versus avoidance: A re-examination of the separate processes hypothesis. PLoS One 2019; 14:e0217458. [PMID: 31216290 PMCID: PMC6583984 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0217458] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/10/2018] [Accepted: 05/13/2019] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Rats not only avoid ingesting a substance associated with LiCl toxicosis, but they display rejection reflexes (e.g., gapes) to its taste; this latter response is thought to reflect disgust or taste aversion. Prior work has shown that rats also avoid consuming foods/fluids associated with other adverse gastrointestinal (GI) effects like lactose indigestion but without the concomitant change in oromotor responses (taste reactivity; TR) indicative of aversion. Because of interpretive limitations of the methods used in those studies, we revisited the taste aversion-avoidance distinction with a design that minimized non-treatment differences among groups. Effects on intake and preference (Experiments 1a, 1b, and 2), as well as consummatory (TR, Experiment 1a and 1b) and appetitive (Progressive Ratio, Experiment 2) behaviors to the taste stimulus were assessed after training. In both experiments, rats were trained to associate 0.2% saccharin (CS) with intraduodenal infusions of LiCl, Lactose, or NaCl control. Rats trained with 18% lactose, 0.3 and 1.5 mEq/kg dose of LiCl subsequently avoided the taste CS in post-training single-bottle intake tests and two-bottle choice tests. However, only those trained with 1.5 mEq/kg LiCl displayed post-conditioning increases in taste CS-elicited aversive TR (Experiment 1a and 1b). This dose of LiCl also led to reductions in breakpoint for saccharin. The fact that conditioned avoidance is not always accompanied by changes in other common appetitive and/or consummatory indices of ingestive motivation further supports a functional dissociation between these processes, and highlights the intricacies of visceral influences on taste-guided ingestive motivation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lindsey A. Schier
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, California, United States of America
| | - Kellie M. Hyde
- Department of Psychology, Program in Neuroscience, Florida State University, Tallahassee, Florida, United States of America
| | - Alan C. Spector
- Department of Psychology, Program in Neuroscience, Florida State University, Tallahassee, Florida, United States of America
- * E-mail:
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20
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Riordan JE, Dwyer DM. Licking microstructure and hedonic changes after flavour preference learning in rats. Q J Exp Psychol (Hove) 2019; 72:2717-2725. [PMID: 31144575 DOI: 10.1177/1747021819857052] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/15/2022]
Abstract
Pairing a neutral flavour conditioned stimulus (CS) with a nutrient reward will create a learned preference for that CS. Prior studies suggest that this is accompanied by an increase in the hedonic value of the CS, although the reliability of this effect is yet to be fully established. Here, flavour CS+s were mixed with either 16% sucrose or maltodextrin (with control CS-s mixed with 2% solutions of the same carbohydrate). While a reliable preference for the CS+ was seen in every case, and there was a learned increase in lick cluster size when all conditions were considered together, this difference was significant in only one experimental condition considered alone. A meta-analysis of these results and similar published licking microstructure analysis studies found that the Cohen's dav effect size for changes in licking microstructure after flavour preference learning was 0.16. This is far smaller than the effect sizes reported when assessing learned hedonic changes in flavour preference based on other test or training methods. Although this confirms that flavour preference learning produces hedonic changes in the cue flavours, the analysis of licking microstructure with training based on voluntary consumption of CS and unconditioned stimulus (US) compounds may be an insensitive means of assessing such effects.
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21
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Darevsky D, Gill TM, Vitale KR, Hu B, Wegner SA, Hopf FW. Drinking despite adversity: behavioral evidence for a head down and push strategy of conflict-resistant alcohol drinking in rats. Addict Biol 2019. [PMID: 29516676 DOI: 10.1111/adb.12608] [Citation(s) in RCA: 47] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/27/2022]
Abstract
Compulsive alcohol drinking, where intake persists regardless of adverse consequences, plays a major role in the substantial costs of alcohol use disorder. However, the processes that promote aversion-resistant drinking remain poorly understood. Compulsion-like responding has been considered automatic and reflexive and also to involve higher motivation, since drinking persists despite adversity. Thus, we used lickometry, where microstructural behavioral changes can reflect altered motivation, to test whether conflict-resistant intake [quinine-alcohol (QuiA)] reflected greater automaticity or motivation relative to alcohol-only drinking (Alc). Front-loading during QuiA and Alc suggested incentive to drink in both. However, the relationship between total licking and intake was less variable during QuiA, as was lick volume, without changes in average responding. QuiA bout organization was also less variable, with fewer licks outside of bouts (stray licks) and fewer gaps within bouts. Interestingly, QuiA avoidance of stray licking continued into short bouts, with fewer short and more medium-length bouts, which was striking given their minor impact on intake. Instead, more effort at bout onset could allow short bouts to persist longer. Indeed, while QuiA licking was overall faster, QuiA bouts were especially fast at bout initiation. However, few QuiA changes individually predicted greater intake, perhaps suggesting an overarching strategy during aversion-resistant responding. Thus, our results indicate that aversion-resistant intake exhibited less variability, where increased automaticity could decrease need for awareness, and stronger bout initiation, which might prolong responding despite adversity. This may reflect a collective strategy, which we call Head Down and Push responding that facilitates conflict-resistant, compulsion-like intake.
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Affiliation(s)
- David Darevsky
- Alcohol and Addiction Research Group, Department of NeurologyUniversity of California at San Francisco San Francisco CA USA
| | - Thomas Michael Gill
- Alcohol and Addiction Research Group, Department of NeurologyUniversity of California at San Francisco San Francisco CA USA
- Gladstone CenterUniversity of California at San Francisco San Francisco CA USA
| | - Katherine Rose Vitale
- Alcohol and Addiction Research Group, Department of NeurologyUniversity of California at San Francisco San Francisco CA USA
| | - Bing Hu
- Alcohol and Addiction Research Group, Department of NeurologyUniversity of California at San Francisco San Francisco CA USA
| | - Scott Andrew Wegner
- Alcohol and Addiction Research Group, Department of NeurologyUniversity of California at San Francisco San Francisco CA USA
| | - Frederic Woodward Hopf
- Alcohol and Addiction Research Group, Department of NeurologyUniversity of California at San Francisco San Francisco CA USA
- Wheeler Center for the Study of AddictionUniversity of California at San Francisco San Francisco CA USA
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22
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Nelson TS, Holstein SE, Baird JP, Pittman DW. Selective stimulation of central GABA Aα2,3,5 receptors increases intake and motivation to consume sucrose solution in rats. Neuroscience 2019; 409:111-119. [PMID: 31047979 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroscience.2019.04.040] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/05/2019] [Revised: 04/02/2019] [Accepted: 04/19/2019] [Indexed: 01/30/2023]
Abstract
Benzodiazepines are one of the most commonly prescribed anxiolytic drugs in America, and between 2006 and 2015 prescription rates increased by an estimated 27.1%. Weight gain is a common side effect of these drugs and it may result from increased feeding caused by drug-enhanced food palatability. We investigated the role of specific GABAA receptor subtypes involved with benzodiazepine-induced food consumption through third ventricle injections of L-838,417, a partial agonist of GABAA α2, α3, and α5 subunits, and a full antagonist of the α1 receptor subunit. A microanalysis of the licking behavior of adult male rats to a sucrose solution was used to isolate drug effects on specific consummatory behaviors that include: hedonic taste evaluation, food approach behavior, and oromotor function. L-838,417 dose-dependently increased intake through increases in the motivation to approach the solution (shorter pause intervals between bouts of licking) and through enhancement of measures associated with hedonic taste evaluation. Oromotor depressant effects previously associated with broad-spectrum benzodiazepine receptor agonists were not observed. These results indicate that nuclei in proximity to the ventricles respond to GABAA α2, α3, or α5 activation to induce motivation to feed, absent of α1 receptor subunit activation. Furthermore, activation of the α1 subunit is not necessary for benzodiazepine hyperphagia and may instead contribute to the oromotor depressant and sedative properties of classic benzodiazepine agonists. Hypothalamic nuclei such as the paraventricular nucleus may be involved in the benzodiazepine-increased motivation to feed, while the parabrachial nucleus of the hindbrain could contribute to benzodiazepine-induced enhancement of taste palatability.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tyler S Nelson
- Department of Psychology, Wofford College, 429 North Church Street, Spartanburg, SC 29303-3663, USA
| | - Sarah E Holstein
- Department of Psychology, Wofford College, 429 North Church Street, Spartanburg, SC 29303-3663, USA
| | - John-Paul Baird
- Department of Psychology, Amherst College, P.O. Box 5000, Amherst, MA 01002-5000, USA
| | - David W Pittman
- Department of Psychology, Wofford College, 429 North Church Street, Spartanburg, SC 29303-3663, USA.
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23
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Arthurs J, Lin JY, Reilly S. Inhibiting gustatory thalamus or medial amygdala has opposing effects on taste neophobia. Neurobiol Learn Mem 2018; 156:24-32. [PMID: 30336209 PMCID: PMC6309437 DOI: 10.1016/j.nlm.2018.10.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/13/2018] [Revised: 09/13/2018] [Accepted: 10/11/2018] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
Abstract
Taste neophobia is a feeding system defense mechanism that limits consumption of an unknown, and therefore potentially dangerous, edible until the post-ingestive consequences are experienced. We found that transient pharmacological inhibition (induced with the GABA agonists baclofen and muscimol) of the gustatory thalamus (GT; Experiment 1), but not medial amygdala (MeA; Experiment 2), during exposure to a novel saccharin solution attenuated taste neophobia. In Experiment 3 we found that inhibition of MeA neurons (induced with the chemogenetic receptor hM4DGi) enhanced the expression of taste neophobia whereas excitation of MeA neurons (with hM3DGq) had no influence of taste neophobia. Overall, these results refine the temporal involvement of the GT in the occurrence of taste neophobia and support the hypothesis that neuronal excitation in the GT is necessary for taste neophobia. Conversely, we show that chemogenetically, but not pharmacologically, inhibiting MeA neurons is sufficient to exaggerate the expression of taste neophobia.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joe Arthurs
- University of Illinois at Chicago, Department of Psychology, United States.
| | - Jian-You Lin
- University of Illinois at Chicago, Department of Psychology, United States
| | - Steve Reilly
- University of Illinois at Chicago, Department of Psychology, United States.
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Johnson AW. Examining the influence of CS duration and US density on cue-potentiated feeding through analyses of licking microstructure. LEARNING AND MOTIVATION 2018; 61:85-96. [PMID: 30082927 PMCID: PMC6075650 DOI: 10.1016/j.lmot.2017.07.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
Abstract
In the current study, groups of mice were trained with either short (20 s) or long (120 s) conditioned stimulus (CS) durations associated with different rates of sucrose unconditioned stimulus (US) delivery, to examine whether different behavioral forms of cue-potentiated feeding in sated mice would be evoked. In training mice received presentations of an auditory CS for 20 s during which a sucrose US was delivered at a density of 1/9 s (Group-20-s). A second group of mice received an auditory CS for 120 s and a US density of 1/49 s (Group-120-s). During training, a shorter CS duration and higher rate of US delivery resulted in greater acquisition of food cup responding, and during the test stage Group-20-s mice also displayed higher CS evoked lick rates, though all mice showed cue-potentiated feeding. An analysis of licking microstructure also revealed that Group-120-s mice displayed CS evoked licking behavior that reflected an increase in the perceived palatability of the sucrose US. These findings are discussed with respect to the influence of CS interval and US density on associatively activated sensory and affective representations of a US, and contrast mediated effects resulting from presentation of excitatory and inhibitory conditioned stimuli.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexander W Johnson
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience Program, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, 48864, USA
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Johnson AW. Characterizing ingestive behavior through licking microstructure: Underlying neurobiology and its use in the study of obesity in animal models. Int J Dev Neurosci 2018; 64:38-47. [PMID: 28684308 PMCID: PMC6063358 DOI: 10.1016/j.ijdevneu.2017.06.012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 39] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/31/2017] [Revised: 04/24/2017] [Accepted: 06/30/2017] [Indexed: 12/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Ingestive behavior is controlled by multiple distinct peripheral and central physiological mechanisms that ultimately determine whether a particular food should be accepted or avoided. As rodents consume a fluid they display stereotyped rhythmic tongue movements, and by analyzing the temporal distribution of pauses of licking, it is possible through analyses of licking microstructure to uncover dissociable evaluative and motivational variables that contribute to ingestive behavior. The mean number of licks occurring within each burst of licking (burst and cluster size) reflects the palatability of the consumed solution, whereas the frequency of initiating novel bouts of licking behavior (burst and cluster number) is dependent upon the degree of gastrointestinal inhibition that accrues through continued fluid ingestion. This review describes the analysis of these measures within a context of the behavioral variables that come to influence the acceptance or avoidance of a fluid, and the neurobiological mechanisms that underlie alterations in the temporal distribution of pauses of licks. The application of these studies to models of obesity in animals is also described.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexander W Johnson
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience Program, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, 48864, USA.
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Pittman DW, Brantly AM, Drobonick AL, King HT, Mesta DC, Richards CG, Lal M, Lai M. The Palatability of Lopinavir and Ritonavir Delivered by an Innovative Freeze-Dried Fast-Dissolving Tablet Formulation. AIDS Res Treat 2018; 2018:5908167. [PMID: 29593900 PMCID: PMC5822810 DOI: 10.1155/2018/5908167] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/17/2017] [Accepted: 12/03/2017] [Indexed: 01/19/2023] Open
Abstract
Negative hedonic sensory qualities of HIV antiretroviral drugs often reduce patient adherence particularly in pediatric populations requiring oral consumption. This study examines the palatability of an innovative delivery mechanism utilizing a freeze-drying-in-blister approach to create fast-dissolving tablets (FDTs) containing a fixed-dose combination of lopinavir and ritonavir (LPV/r). Consumption patterns of solutions during brief-access and long-term testing and baby foodstuff consumption were analyzed to evaluate the orosensory detection and avoidance of placebo FDTs containing no LPV/r (FDT-) and FDTs containing LPV/r (FDT+). Rats showed no change in consumption patterns for the placebo FDT- compared with control solutions. Rats can detect but do not avoid FDT+ at body-weight-adjusted dosages in both brief-access (30-s) and long-term (23 h) consumption tests. There is an aversive response to concentrated doses of FDT+ during brief-access tests that cannot be masked by 25% sucrose. However, the strongest FDT+ concentration was not rejected when mixed with 50 g of applesauce, banana sauce, or rice cereal baby foodstuffs. The averseness of the FDT+ was associated with the presence of LPV/r and not the FDT- formulation itself. The novel FDT formulation appears to be a palatable delivery mechanism for oral antiretroviral pharmaceuticals especially when mixed with baby foodstuffs.
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Affiliation(s)
- David W. Pittman
- Department of Psychology, Wofford College, 429 North Church Street, Spartanburg, SC 29303, USA
| | - Alexandra M. Brantly
- Department of Psychology, Wofford College, 429 North Church Street, Spartanburg, SC 29303, USA
| | - Alexandra L. Drobonick
- Department of Psychology, Wofford College, 429 North Church Street, Spartanburg, SC 29303, USA
| | - Hannah T. King
- Department of Psychology, Wofford College, 429 North Church Street, Spartanburg, SC 29303, USA
| | - Daniel C. Mesta
- Department of Psychology, Wofford College, 429 North Church Street, Spartanburg, SC 29303, USA
| | - Caroline G. Richards
- Department of Psychology, Wofford College, 429 North Church Street, Spartanburg, SC 29303, USA
| | - Manjari Lal
- PATH, 2201 Westlake Avenue, Suite 200, Seattle, WA 98121, USA
| | - Manshun Lai
- PATH, 2201 Westlake Avenue, Suite 200, Seattle, WA 98121, USA
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27
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Abstract
Running in an activity wheel generates pica behavior (kaolin clay intake) in rats. Wheel running also results in Pavlovian conditioned avoidance of the taste solution consumed immediately before the running. Since pica has been considered a behavioral marker of nausea in rats, these findings suggest that wheel running induces nausea, which is the underlying physiological state for establishing taste avoidance. This article reports a replication of running-based pica in rats (Experiment 1) and concurrent demonstrations of running-based pica and taste avoidance in the same animals (Experiments 2 and 3). Also shown is that pica does not alleviate running-based taste avoidance (Experiment 3). Another finding is that pica is generated by a nausea-inducing lithium chloride injection but not by a pain-inducing hypertonic saline injection (Experiment 4). These results, when taken together, support the hypothesis that pica behavior generated by wheel running reflects nausea in rats.
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Arthurs J, Lin JY, Ocampo R, Reilly S. Lactose malabsorption and taste aversion learning. Physiol Behav 2017; 180:39-44. [PMID: 28807538 PMCID: PMC5597491 DOI: 10.1016/j.physbeh.2017.08.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/17/2017] [Revised: 08/10/2017] [Accepted: 08/11/2017] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
Abstract
Consumption of foods can be suppressed by two feeding system defense mechanisms: conditioned taste aversion (CTA) or taste avoidance learning (TAL). There is a debate in the literature about which form of intake suppression is caused by various aversive stimuli. For instance, illness-inducing stimuli like lithium chloride are the gold standard for producing CTA and external (or peripheral) painful stimuli, such as footshock, are the traditional model of TAL. The distinction between CTA and TAL, which have identical effects on intake, is based on differential effects on palatability. That is, CTA involves a decrease in both intake and palatability, whereas TAL suppresses intake without influencing palatability. We evaluated whether lactose, which causes gastrointestinal pain in adult rats, produces CTA or TAL. Using lick pattern analysis to simultaneously measure intake and palatability (i.e., lick cluster size and initial lick rate), we found that pairing saccharin with intragastric infusions of lactose suppressed both the intake and palatability of saccharin. These results support the conclusion that gastrointestinal pain produced by lactose malabsorption produces a CTA, not TAL as had previously been suggested. Furthermore, these findings encourage the view that the CTA mechanism is broadly tuned to defend against the ingestion of foods with aversive post-ingestive effects.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joe Arthurs
- Department of Psychology, University of Illinois at Chicago, United States.
| | - Jian-You Lin
- Department of Psychology, University of Illinois at Chicago, United States
| | - Roberto Ocampo
- Department of Psychology, University of Illinois at Chicago, United States
| | - Steve Reilly
- Department of Psychology, University of Illinois at Chicago, United States.
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Genetic control of oromotor phenotypes: A survey of licking and ingestive behaviors in highly diverse strains of mice. Physiol Behav 2017; 177:34-43. [PMID: 28411104 DOI: 10.1016/j.physbeh.2017.04.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/30/2017] [Revised: 04/03/2017] [Accepted: 04/10/2017] [Indexed: 02/08/2023]
Abstract
In order to examine genetic influences on fluid ingestion, 20-min intake of either water or 0.1M sucrose was measured in a lickometer in 18 isogenic strains of mice, including 15 inbred strains and 3 F1 hybrid crosses. Intake and licking data were examined at a number of levels, including lick rate as defined by mean or median interlick interval, as well as several microstructural parameters (i.e. burst-pause structure). In general, strain variation for ingestive phenotypes were correlated across water and sucrose in all strains, indicating fundamental, rather than stimulus-specific, mechanisms of intake. Strain variation was substantial and robust, with heritabilities for phenotypes ranging from 0.22 to 0.73. For mean interlick interval (MPI; a measure of lick rate) strains varied continuously from 94.3 to 127.0ms, a range consistent with previous studies. Furthermore, variation among strains for microstructural traits such as burst size and number suggested that strains possess different overall ingestive strategies, with some favoring more short bursts, and others favoring fewer, long bursts. Strains also varied in cumulative intake functions, exhibiting both linear and decelerated rates of intake across the session.
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Abstract
Learning what to eat and what not to eat is fundamental to our well-being, quality of life, and survival. In particular, the acquisition of conditioned taste aversions (CTAs) protects all animals (including humans) against ingesting foods that contain poisons or toxins. Counterintuitively, CTAs can also develop in situations in which we know with absolute certainty that the food did not cause the subsequent aversive systemic effect. Recent nonhuman animal research, analyzing palatability shifts, has indicated that a wider range of stimuli than has been traditionally acknowledged can induce CTAs. This article integrates these new findings with a reappraisal of some known characteristics of CTA and presents a novel conceptual analysis that is broader and more comprehensive than previous accounts of CTA learning.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jian-You Lin
- Department of Psychology, University of Illinois at Chicago, 1007 West Harrison Street, Chicago, IL, 60607, USA.
| | - Joe Arthurs
- Department of Psychology, University of Illinois at Chicago, 1007 West Harrison Street, Chicago, IL, 60607, USA
| | - Steve Reilly
- Department of Psychology, University of Illinois at Chicago, 1007 West Harrison Street, Chicago, IL, 60607, USA.
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31
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Nonreinforced flavor exposure attenuates the effects of conditioned taste aversion on both flavor consumption and cue palatability. Learn Behav 2016; 41:390-401. [PMID: 23813056 DOI: 10.3758/s13420-013-0114-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/21/2023]
Abstract
Nonreinforced exposure to a cue tends to attenuate subsequent conditioning with that cue-an effect referred to as latent inhibition (LI). In the two experiments reported here, we examined LI effects in the context of conditioned taste aversion by examining both the amount of consumption and the microstructure of the consummatory behavior (in terms of the mean size of lick clusters). The latter measure can be taken to reflect affective responses to, or the palatability of, the solution being consumed. In both experiments, exposure to a to-be-conditioned flavor prior to pairing the flavor with nausea produced by lithium chloride attenuated both the reduction in consumption and the reduction in lick cluster sizes typically produced by taste aversion learning. In addition, we observed a tendency (especially in the lick cluster measure) for nonreinforced exposure to reduce neophobic responses to the test flavors. Taken together, these results reinforce the suggestion from previous experiments using taste reactivity methods that LI attenuates the effects of taste aversion on both consumption and cue palatability. The present results also support the suggestion that the failure in previous studies to see concurrent LI effects on consumption and palatability was due to a context specificity produced by the oral taste infusion methods required for taste reactivity analyses. Finally, the fact that the pattern of extinction of conditioned changes in consumption and in lick cluster sizes was not affected by preexposure to the cue flavors suggests that LI influenced the quantity but not the quality of conditioned taste aversion.
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32
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Rebecca Glatt A, St John SJ, Lu L, Boughter JD. Temporal and qualitative dynamics of conditioned taste aversions in C57BL/6J and DBA/2J mice self-administering LiCl. Physiol Behav 2015; 153:97-108. [PMID: 26524511 DOI: 10.1016/j.physbeh.2015.10.033] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/28/2015] [Revised: 10/29/2015] [Accepted: 10/30/2015] [Indexed: 12/27/2022]
Abstract
Self-administration of LiCl solution has been shown to result in the formation of a conditioned taste aversion (CTA) that generalizes to NaCl in rats. This paradigm may have considerable ecological validity as it models CTA learning in natural settings, and also allows for the investigation of drinking microstructure as an assay of potential shifts in stimulus palatability. We used this paradigm to examine possible mouse strain differences in CTA acquisition, generalization, and extinction. In the first experiment, C57BL/6J (B6) and DBA/2J (D2) mice self-administered LiCl (or control NaCl) over a 20-minute free access acquisition period and were tested on the following day with a panel of taste solutions available in brief (5-s) trials delivered in random order. In the second experiment, mice again self-administered LiCl or NaCl (at low, 0.12 M, or high, 0.24 M concentrations) in a 20-minute session, and on the following day received a 20-minute free access period to equimolar NaCl. Strain differences were found for aspects of ingestive behavior, with B6 mice showing greater consumption of all stimuli, including water, while D2 mice lick faster, in less frequent but longer bursts. We did not, however, find evidence of a robust strain difference in taste aversion learning. Both strains demonstrated profound alterations in licking microstructure in the generalization session relative to controls. We suggest that a decrease in "lick efficiency" (the percentage of inter-lick intervals within a burst of short duration vs. longer duration) reflects avoidance behavior, and signals a shift in palatability of a stimulus following CTA.
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Affiliation(s)
- A Rebecca Glatt
- Department of Department of Anatomy & Neurobiology, University of Tennessee Health Science, USA
| | | | - Lianyi Lu
- Department of Department of Anatomy & Neurobiology, University of Tennessee Health Science, USA
| | - John D Boughter
- Department of Department of Anatomy & Neurobiology, University of Tennessee Health Science, USA.
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33
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Nakajima S, Onza N, Nakagawa H. Relapse of generalized bait shyness in rats after constant and graded extinction procedures. LEARNING AND MOTIVATION 2015. [DOI: 10.1016/j.lmot.2015.06.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
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34
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Parabrachial Nucleus Contributions to Glucagon-Like Peptide-1 Receptor Agonist-Induced Hypophagia. Neuropsychopharmacology 2015; 40:2001-14. [PMID: 25703200 PMCID: PMC4839524 DOI: 10.1038/npp.2015.50] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/20/2014] [Revised: 01/10/2015] [Accepted: 01/14/2015] [Indexed: 01/09/2023]
Abstract
Exendin-4 (Ex4), a glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor (GLP-1R) agonist approved to treat type 2 diabetes mellitus, is well known to induce hypophagia in human and animal models. We evaluated the contributions of the hindbrain parabrachial nucleus (PBN) to systemic Ex4-induced hypophagia, as the PBN receives gustatory and visceral afferent relays and descending input from several brain nuclei associated with feeding. Rats with ibotenic-acid lesions targeted to the lateral PBN (PBNx) and sham controls received Ex4 (1 μg/kg) before 24 h home cage chow or 90 min 0.3 M sucrose access tests, and licking microstructure was analyzed to identify components of feeding behavior affected by Ex4. PBN lesion efficacy was confirmed using conditioned taste aversion (CTA) tests. As expected, sham control but not PBNx rats developed a CTA. In sham-lesioned rats, Ex4 reduced chow intake within 4 h of injection and sucrose intake within 90 min. PBNx rats did not show reduced chow or sucrose intake after Ex4 treatment, indicating that the PBN is necessary for Ex4 effects under the conditions tested. In sham-treated rats, Ex4 affected licking microstructure measures associated with hedonic taste evaluation, appetitive behavior, oromotor coordination, and inhibitory postingestive feedback. Licking microstructure responses in PBNx rats after Ex4 treatment were similar to sham-treated rats with the exception of inhibitory postingestive feedback measures. Together, the results suggest that the PBN critically contributes to the hypophagic effects of systemically delivered GLP-1R agonists by enhancing visceral feedback.
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35
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Microstructural analysis of rat ethanol and water drinking patterns using a modified operant self-administration model. Physiol Behav 2015; 149:119-30. [PMID: 26037631 DOI: 10.1016/j.physbeh.2015.05.034] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/02/2015] [Revised: 05/27/2015] [Accepted: 05/28/2015] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Ethanol drinking pattern has emerged as an important factor in the development, maintenance, and health consequences of alcohol use disorders in humans. The goal of these studies was to further our understanding of this important factor through refinement of an operant rodent model of ethanol consumption capable of drinking pattern microstructural analysis. We evaluated measures of total consumption, appetitive behavior, and drinking microstructure for ethanol and water at baseline and assessed alterations induced by two treatments previously shown to significantly alter gross ethanol appetitive and consummatory behaviors in opposing directions. METHODS Male Long-Evans rats were trained on an FR1 operant paradigm which allowed for continuous liquid access until an 8 second pause in consumption resulted in termination of liquid access. Total appetitive and consummatory behaviors were assessed in addition to microstructural drinking pattern for both ethanol and water during a five day baseline drinking period, after chronic intermittent ethanol vapor exposure, and following administration of a cannabinoid receptor antagonist SR141716a. RESULTS As in previous operant studies, ethanol vapor exposure resulted in increases in ethanol-directed responding, total consumption, and rate of intake. Further, striking differential alterations to ethanol and water bout size, duration, and lick pattern occurred consistent with alterations in hedonic evaluation. Vapor additionally specifically reduced the number of ethanol-directed lever presses which did not result in subsequent consumption. SR141716a administration reversed many of these effects. CONCLUSIONS The addition of microstructural analysis to operant self-administration by rodents provides a powerful and translational tool for the detection of specific alterations in ethanol drinking pattern which may enable insights into neural mechanisms underlying specific components of drug consumption.
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36
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Soto J, Sheng Y, Standing JF, Orlu Gul M, Tuleu C. Development of a model for robust and exploratory analysis of the rodent brief-access taste aversion data. Eur J Pharm Biopharm 2015; 91:47-51. [DOI: 10.1016/j.ejpb.2015.01.016] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/25/2014] [Accepted: 01/14/2015] [Indexed: 02/02/2023]
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37
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Saites LN, Goldsmith Z, Densky J, Guedes VA, Boughter JD. Mice perceive synergistic umami mixtures as tasting sweet. Chem Senses 2015; 40:295-303. [PMID: 25820205 DOI: 10.1093/chemse/bjv010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Previous electrophysiological investigation shows that combinations of compounds classified by humans as umami-tasting, such as glutamate salts and 5'-ribonucleotides, elicit synergistic responses in neurons throughout the rodent taste system and produce a pattern that resembles responses to sweet compounds. The current study tested the hypothesis that a synergistic mixture of monopotassium glutamate (MPG) and inositol monophosphate (IMP) possesses perceptual similarity to sucrose in mice. We estimated behavioral similarity among these tastants and the individual umami compounds using a series of conditioned taste aversion (CTA) tests, a procedure that measures whether a CTA formed to one stimulus generalizes to another. Our primary finding was that a CTA to a synergistic mixture of MPG + IMP generalizes to sucrose, and vice-versa. This indicates umami synergistic mixtures are perceived as having a sweet, or at least sucrose-like, taste to mice. Considering other recent studies, our data argue strongly in favor of multiple receptor mechanisms for umami detection, and complexity in taste perception models for rodents.
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Affiliation(s)
- Louis N Saites
- Department of Anatomy & Neurobiology, University of Tennessee Health Science Center, 855 Monroe Avenue, Suite 515, Memphis, TN 38163, USA
| | - Zachary Goldsmith
- Department of Anatomy & Neurobiology, University of Tennessee Health Science Center, 855 Monroe Avenue, Suite 515, Memphis, TN 38163, USA
| | - Jaron Densky
- Department of Anatomy & Neurobiology, University of Tennessee Health Science Center, 855 Monroe Avenue, Suite 515, Memphis, TN 38163, USA
| | - Vivian A Guedes
- Department of Anatomy & Neurobiology, University of Tennessee Health Science Center, 855 Monroe Avenue, Suite 515, Memphis, TN 38163, USA
| | - John D Boughter
- Department of Anatomy & Neurobiology, University of Tennessee Health Science Center, 855 Monroe Avenue, Suite 515, Memphis, TN 38163, USA
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38
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Lin JY, Arthurs J, Reilly S. Gustatory insular cortex, aversive taste memory and taste neophobia. Neurobiol Learn Mem 2015; 119:77-84. [PMID: 25617666 DOI: 10.1016/j.nlm.2015.01.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/29/2014] [Revised: 12/02/2014] [Accepted: 01/09/2015] [Indexed: 02/01/2023]
Abstract
Prior research indicates a role for the gustatory insular cortex (GC) in taste neophobia. Rats with lesions of the GC show much weaker avoidance to a novel and potentially dangerous taste than do neurologically intact animals. The current study used the retention of conditioned taste aversion (CTA) as a tool to determine whether the GC modulates neophobia by processing taste novelty or taste danger. The results show that GC lesions attenuate CTA retention (Experiment 1) and impair taste neophobia (Experiment 2). Given that normal CTA retention does not involve the processing of taste novelty, the pattern of results suggests that the GC is involved in taste neophobia via its function in processing the danger conveyed by a taste stimulus.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jian-You Lin
- Department of Psychology, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL 60607, United States.
| | - Joe Arthurs
- Department of Psychology, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL 60607, United States
| | - Steve Reilly
- Department of Psychology, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL 60607, United States.
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39
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Gasparini S, Menani JV, Daniels D. Moxonidine into the lateral parabrachial nucleus modifies postingestive signals involved in sodium intake control. Neuroscience 2014; 284:768-774. [PMID: 25264033 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroscience.2014.09.042] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/12/2014] [Revised: 09/03/2014] [Accepted: 09/18/2014] [Indexed: 10/24/2022]
Abstract
The activation of α2-adrenoceptors with bilateral injections of moxonidine (α2-adrenoceptor and imidazoline receptor agonist) into the lateral parabrachial nucleus (LPBN) increases 1.8% NaCl intake induced by treatment with furosemide (FURO)+captopril (CAP) subcutaneously. In the present study, we analyzed licking microstructure during water and 1.8% NaCl intake to investigate the changes in orosensory and postingestive signals produced by moxonidine injected into the LPBN. Male Sprague-Dawley rats were treated with FURO+CAP combined with bilateral injections of vehicle or moxonidine (0.5 nmol/0.2 μl) into the LPBN. Bilateral injections of moxonidine into the LPBN increased FURO+CAP-induced 1.8% NaCl intake, without changing water intake. Microstructural analysis of licking behavior found that this increase in NaCl intake was a function of increased number of licking bursts from 15 to 75 min of the test (maximum of 49±9 bursts/bin, vs. vehicle: 2±2 bursts/bin). Analysis of the first 15 min of the test, when most of the licking behavior occurred, found no effect of moxonidine on the number of licks/burst for sodium intake (24±5 licks/burst, vs. vehicle: 27±8 licks/burst). This finding suggests that activation of α2-adrenoceptors in the LPBN affects postingestive signals that are important to inhibit and limit sodium intake by FURO+CAP-treated rats.
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Affiliation(s)
- S Gasparini
- Department of Physiology and Pathology, School of Dentistry, São Paulo State University (UNESP), Araraquara, Brazil
| | - J V Menani
- Department of Physiology and Pathology, School of Dentistry, São Paulo State University (UNESP), Araraquara, Brazil.
| | - D Daniels
- Department of Psychology, University at Buffalo, The State University of New York, United States
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40
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Conditioned taste aversion, drugs of abuse and palatability. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2014; 45:28-45. [PMID: 24813806 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2014.05.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/12/2013] [Revised: 04/15/2014] [Accepted: 05/01/2014] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
Abstract
We consider conditioned taste aversion to involve a learned reduction in the palatability of a taste (and hence in amount consumed) based on the association that develops when a taste experience is followed by gastrointestinal malaise. The present article evaluates the well-established finding that drugs of abuse, at doses that are otherwise considered rewarding and self-administered, cause intake suppression. Our recent work using lick pattern analysis shows that drugs of abuse also cause a palatability downshift and, therefore, support conditioned taste aversion learning.
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41
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Overduin J, Gibbs J, Cummings DE, Reeve JR. CCK-58 elicits both satiety and satiation in rats while CCK-8 elicits only satiation. Peptides 2014; 54:71-80. [PMID: 24468546 PMCID: PMC3989439 DOI: 10.1016/j.peptides.2014.01.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/16/2013] [Revised: 01/14/2014] [Accepted: 01/15/2014] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
Abstract
Reduction of food intake by exogenous cholecystokinin (CCK) has been demonstrated primarily for its short molecular form, CCK-8. Mounting evidence, however, implicates CCK-58 as a major physiologically active CCK form, with different neural and exocrine response profiles than CCK-8. In three studies, we compared meal-pattern effects of intraperitoneal injections CCK-8 vs. CCK-58 in undeprived male Sprague-Dawley rats consuming sweetened condensed milk. In study 1, rats (N=10) received CCK-8, CCK-58 (0.45, 0.9, 1.8 and 3.6 nmol/kg) or vehicle before a 4-h test-food presentation. At most doses, both CCK-8 and CCK-58 similarly reduced meal size relative to vehicle. Meal-size reduction prompted a compensatory shortening of the intermeal interval (IMI) after CCK-8, but not after CCK-58, which uniquely increased the satiety ratio (IMI/size of the preceding meal). In the second study, lick patterns were monitored after administration of 0.9 nmol/kg CCK-58, CCK-8 or vehicle. Lick cluster size, lick efficiency and interlick-interval distribution remained unaltered compared to vehicle, implying natural satiation, rather than illness, following both CCK forms. In study 3, threshold satiating doses of the two CCK forms were given at 5 and 30 min after meal termination, respectively. CCK 58, but not CCK-8 increased the intermeal interval and satiety ratio compared to vehicle. In conclusion, while CCK 58 and CCK-8 both stimulate satiation, thereby reducing meal size, CCK-58 consistently exerts a satiety effect, prolonging IMI. Given the physiological prominence of CCK-58, these results suggest that CCK's role in food intake regulation may require re-examination.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joost Overduin
- Weill Medical College, Cornell University, White Plains, NY 10605, USA; Veterans Administration Puget Sound Health Care System, Office of Research and Development Medical Research Service, Seattle, WA 98108, USA; Division of Metabolism, Endocrinology and Nutrition, Department of Medicine, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, WA 98195, USA
| | - James Gibbs
- Weill Medical College, Cornell University, White Plains, NY 10605, USA
| | - David E Cummings
- Veterans Administration Puget Sound Health Care System, Office of Research and Development Medical Research Service, Seattle, WA 98108, USA; Division of Metabolism, Endocrinology and Nutrition, Department of Medicine, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, WA 98195, USA
| | - Joseph R Reeve
- Division of Digestive Diseases, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA and CURE: Digestive Diseases Research Center, Veterans Administration, Los Angeles, CA 90073, USA.
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Arthurs J, Reilly S. Role of the gustatory thalamus in taste learning. Behav Brain Res 2013; 250:9-17. [PMID: 23644184 PMCID: PMC3699963 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbr.2013.04.039] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/22/2013] [Revised: 04/16/2013] [Accepted: 04/22/2013] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
Abstract
The present study re-examined the involvement of the gustatory thalamus (GT) in the acquisition of drug- and toxin-induced conditioned taste aversions (CTAs) using a standardized procedure involving 15-min taste trials in rats injected with morphine (Experiment 1), lithium chloride (Experiment 2) or amphetamine (Experiment 3). Contrary to previous results, GT lesions did not eliminate drug-induced CTAs. Rather, GT-lesioned rats acquired aversions of comparable magnitude to non-lesioned subjects but from an elevated intake on the first conditioning trial. A similar pattern of lesion effects was found in the acquisition of an illness-induced CTA. Thus, we conclude that GT lesions do not differentially influence CTAs conditioned with drugs or toxins. The lesion-induced elevated intake of a novel tastant confirms an unappreciated role for the GT in taste neophobia.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joe Arthurs
- University of Illinois at Chicago, IL 60607,United States
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Lin JY, Arthurs J, Reilly S. Reduced palatability in pain-induced conditioned taste aversions. Physiol Behav 2013; 119:79-85. [PMID: 23769688 DOI: 10.1016/j.physbeh.2013.06.012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/05/2013] [Revised: 05/14/2013] [Accepted: 06/05/2013] [Indexed: 11/15/2022]
Abstract
The current study investigated whether internal pain-inducing agents can modulate palatability of a tastant in the same way as illness-inducing agents (e.g., lithium chloride). Similar to traditional conditioned taste aversion (CTA) experiments, during conditioning the rats were exposed to a saccharin solution followed by intraperitoneal injections of either gallamine (Experiment 1) or hypertonic sodium chloride (NaCl; Experiments 1 and 2). In addition to the total amount consumed, the time of each lick was recorded for lick pattern analysis. The results showed that both gallamine and hypertonic NaCl caused suppression in saccharin intake. Importantly, both lick cluster size and initial lick rate (the measures of taste palatability) were reduced as well. This pattern of results suggests that these pain-inducing agents reduce the hedonic value of the associated tastant and thus CTA is acquired. The current finding serves as evidence supporting the view that CTA is a broadly tuned mechanism that can be triggered by changes in internal body states following consummatory experience.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jian-You Lin
- Department of Psychology, University of Illinois at Chicago, 1007 West Harrison Street, Chicago, IL 60607, United States.
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Lardeux S, Kim JJ, Nicola SM. Intermittent access to sweet high-fat liquid induces increased palatability and motivation to consume in a rat model of binge consumption. Physiol Behav 2013; 114-115:21-31. [PMID: 23499930 DOI: 10.1016/j.physbeh.2013.03.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/08/2012] [Revised: 01/16/2013] [Accepted: 03/05/2013] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Abstract
Binge eating disorders are characterized by discrete episodes of rapid and excessive food consumption. In rats, giving intermittent access to sweet fat food mimics this aspect of binge eating. These models typically employ solid food; however, the total amount consumed depends on motivation, palatability and satiety, which are difficult to dissociate with solid food. In contrast, lick microstructure analysis can be used to dissociate these parameters when the ingestant is a liquid. Therefore, we developed a binge model using a liquid emulsion composed of corn oil, heavy cream and sugar. We show that rats given intermittent access to this high-fat emulsion develop binge-like behavior comparable to that previously observed with solid high-fat food. One feature of this behavior was a gradual escalation in consumption across 2.5 weeks of intermittent access, which was not apparent in rats given lower-fat liquid on the same access schedule. Lick microstructure analysis suggests that this escalation was due at least in part to increases in both motivation to consume and palatability-driven consumption.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sylvie Lardeux
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Science and Dominick P. Purpura Department of Neuroscience, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, NY 10461, USA
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Tenk CM, Kavaliers M, Ossenkopp K. Neonatal treatment with lipopolysaccharide differentially affects adult anxiety responses in the light–dark test and taste neophobia test in male and female rats. Int J Dev Neurosci 2012; 31:171-80. [DOI: 10.1016/j.ijdevneu.2012.12.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/01/2012] [Revised: 12/21/2012] [Accepted: 12/21/2012] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Christine M. Tenk
- Department of PsychologyBrescia University CollegeLondonONCanadaN6G 1H2
| | - Martin Kavaliers
- Neuroscience Program and Department of PsychologyWestern UniversityLondonONCanadaN6A 5C2
| | - Klaus‐Peter Ossenkopp
- Neuroscience Program and Department of PsychologyWestern UniversityLondonONCanadaN6A 5C2
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Lin JY, Amodeo LR, Arthurs J, Reilly S. Taste neophobia and palatability: the pleasure of drinking. Physiol Behav 2012; 106:515-9. [PMID: 22484563 DOI: 10.1016/j.physbeh.2012.03.029] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/30/2012] [Revised: 03/21/2012] [Accepted: 03/22/2012] [Indexed: 10/28/2022]
Abstract
Taste neophobia is manifested behaviorally as lower intake of a novel, potentially dangerous tastant relative to the same tastant when it is perceived as safe and familiar. To further characterize this phenomenon, microstructural analysis of lick patterns was used to track the transition from novel to familiar for three tastants: saccharin, quinine and Polycose. The results revealed that in addition to an increase in the amount consumed (for saccharin and quinine but not Polycose), cluster size (an index of palatability) became larger as familiarity with the benign tastants increased. The current finding suggests that the pleasure of drinking increases as the novel, potentially dangerous tastant becomes accepted as safe.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jian-You Lin
- Department of Psychology, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL 60607, USA.
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Arthurs J, Lin JY, Amodeo LR, Reilly S. Reduced palatability in drug-induced taste aversion: II. Aversive and rewarding unconditioned stimuli. Behav Neurosci 2012; 126:433-44. [PMID: 22409482 DOI: 10.1037/a0027676] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/01/2023]
Abstract
Drugs of abuse are known to reduce intake of a taste conditioned stimulus (conditional stimulus, CS), a behavioral response sometimes seen as paradoxical because the same drugs also serve as rewards in other behavioral procedures. In the present study we compared patterns of intake and palatability (assessed using microstructural analysis of licking) for a standard saccharin CS paired with the following: lithium chloride, morphine, amphetamine, or sucrose. We found that morphine and amphetamine, like lithium-induced illness, each suppressed CS intake and caused a reduction in saccharin palatability. Sucrose, a rewarding stimulus, did not reduce the palatability of the saccharin CS. We interpret these finds as evidence that drugs of abuse induce conditioned taste aversions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joe Arthurs
- Department of Psychology, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL 60607, USA
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Abstract
Affective processes are a key determinant of behaviour: At its simplest, liked stimuli are approached while disliked stimuli are avoided. Although assessing hedonic responses in nonverbal animals can be difficult, one relatively tractable approach relies on detailed analyses of rodents' consummatory behaviour. Rodents typically produce rhythmic sets of licks that can be grouped into clusters on the basis of the intervals between licks. The mean number of licks in a cluster (cluster size) is directly related to the concentration of palatable and unpalatable solutions. These relationships suggest that lick cluster size might be a useful index of an animal's hedonic reaction to the solution being consumed. I begin by reviewing studies of conditioned flavour preference and aversion that support the idea that lick cluster size can provide useful information about rats' hedonic reactions. I then describe how this methodology has been used to address previously intractable issues in the investigation of contrast effects as well as revealing an analogue of effort justification effects that, in humans, are commonly explained in terms of cognitive dissonance reduction. Finally, I consider how lick analysis might provide information about hedonic responses in animal models of human psychiatric disorders. In all these cases, how an animal did something was particularly informative about why it was doing it.
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Abstract
Molecular mechanisms of salty taste in mammals are not completely understood. We use genetic approaches to study these mechanisms. Previously, we developed a high-throughput procedure to measure NaCl taste thresholds, which involves conditioning mice to avoid LiCl and then examining avoidance of NaCl solutions presented in 48-h 2-bottle preference tests. Using this procedure, we measured NaCl taste thresholds of mice from 13 genealogically divergent inbred stains: 129P3/J, A/J, BALB/cByJ, C3H/HeJ, C57BL/6ByJ, C57BL/6J, CBA/J, CE/J, DBA/2J, FVB/NJ, NZB/BlNJ, PWK/PhJ, and SJL/J. We found substantial strain variation in NaCl taste thresholds: mice from the A/J and 129P3/J strains had high thresholds (were less sensitive), whereas mice from the BALB/cByJ, C57BL/6J, C57BL/6ByJ, CE/J, DBA/2J, NZB/BINJ, and SJL/J had low thresholds (were more sensitive). NaCl taste thresholds measured in this study did not significantly correlate with NaCl preferences or amiloride sensitivity of chorda tympani nerve responses to NaCl determined in the same strains in other studies. To examine whether strain differences in NaCl taste thresholds could have been affected by variation in learning ability or sensitivity to toxic effects of LiCl, we used the same method to measure citric acid taste thresholds in 4 inbred strains with large differences in NaCl taste thresholds but similar acid sensitivity in preference tests (129P3/J, A/J, C57BL/6J, and DBA/2J). Citric acid taste thresholds were similar in these 4 strains. This suggests that our technique measures taste quality-specific thresholds that are likely to represent differences in peripheral taste responsiveness. The strain differences in NaCl taste sensitivity found in this study provide a basis for genetic analysis of this phenotype.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yutaka Ishiwatari
- Monell Chemical Senses Center, 3500 Market Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
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Pittman DW, McGinnis MR, Richardson LM, Miller EJ, Alimohamed ML, Baird JP. Multiple processes underlie benzodiazepine-mediated increases in the consumption of accepted and avoided stimuli. Chem Senses 2012; 37:431-44. [PMID: 22248457 DOI: 10.1093/chemse/bjr125] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Hyperphagia is a reported side effect of anxiolytic benzodiazepines such as chlordiazepoxide (CDP). Prior research has focused primarily on the ingestive responses to sweet or solid foods. We examined CDP effects on licking for normally accepted and avoided taste solutions across a range of concentrations. The effect of CDP (10 mg/kg) versus saline on the licking patterns of water-restricted rats for water and 3 concentrations of sucrose, saccharin, NaCl, monosodium glutamate (MSG), citric acid, and quinine (Q-HCl) solutions was evaluated during 1 h tests. CDP increased meal size for all tastants except citric acid. Analysis of licking microstructure revealed 3 dissociable effects of CDP. CDP affected oromotor coordination as indicated by a uniform increase in the modal interlick interval for all stimuli. CDP increased meal size as indicated by shorter pauses during consumption of water, MSG, and weaker saccharin concentrations, and by fewer long interlick intervals (250-2000 ms) for normally avoided tastants. CDP also increased meal size by increasing burst size, burst duration, and the initial rate of licking for most solutions, suggesting increased hedonic taste evaluation. CDP did not affect variables associated with postingestive feedback such as meal duration or number of bursts, and the results also suggest that CDP did not enhance the perceived taste intensity. We hypothesize that the reduction of pause duration is consistent with an increased motivation to sample the stimulus that synergizes with changes in taste-mediated responsiveness to some but not all stimuli to yield increases in the consumption of both normally accepted and avoided taste stimuli.
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Affiliation(s)
- D W Pittman
- Department of Psychology, Wofford College, 429 N. Church Street, Spartanburg, SC 29303, USA.
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