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Wang Y, Singh A, Li G, Yue S, Hertel K, Wang ZJ. Opioid induces increased DNA damage in prefrontal cortex and nucleus accumbens. Pharmacol Biochem Behav 2023; 224:173535. [PMID: 36907467 DOI: 10.1016/j.pbb.2023.173535] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/22/2022] [Revised: 01/27/2023] [Accepted: 03/04/2023] [Indexed: 03/14/2023]
Abstract
Opioid use disorder (OUD) is a chronic disease characterized by compulsive opioid taking and seeking, affecting millions of people worldwide. The high relapse rate is one of the biggest challenges in treating opioid addiction. However, the cellular and molecular mechanisms underlying relapse to opioid seeking are still unclear. Recent studies have shown that DNA damage and repair processes are implicated in a broad spectrum of neurodegenerative diseases as well as in substance use disorders. In the present study, we hypothesized that DNA damage is related to relapse to heroin seeking. To test our hypothesis, we aim to examine the overall DNA damage level in prefrontal cortex (PFC) and nucleus accumbens (NAc) after heroin exposure, as well as whether manipulating DNA damage levels can alter heroin seeking. First, we observed increased DNA damage in postmortem PFC and NAc tissues from OUD individuals compared to healthy controls. Next, we found significantly increased levels of DNA damage in the dorsomedial PFC (dmPFC) and NAc from mice that underwent heroin self-administration. Moreover, increased accumulation of DNA damage persisted after prolonged abstinence in mouse dmPFC, but not in NAc. This persistent DNA damage was ameliorated by the treatment of reactive oxygen species (ROS) scavenger N-acetylcysteine, along with attenuated heroin-seeking behavior. Furthermore, intra-PFC infusions of topotecan and etoposide during abstinence, which trigger DNA single-strand breaks and double-strand breaks respectively, potentiated heroin-seeking behavior. These findings provide direct evidence that OUD is associated with the accumulation of DNA damage in the brain (especially in the PFC), which may lead to opioid relapse.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yunwanbin Wang
- Department of Pharmacology & Toxicology, School of Pharmacy, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS, USA
| | - Archana Singh
- Department of Pharmacology & Toxicology, School of Pharmacy, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS, USA
| | - Guohui Li
- Department of Pharmacology & Toxicology, School of Pharmacy, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS, USA; Department of Anesthesiology and Surgical Intensive Care Unit, Xinhua Hospital Affiliated to Shanghai Jiaotong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China
| | - Shuwen Yue
- Department of Pharmacology & Toxicology, School of Pharmacy, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS, USA
| | - Kegan Hertel
- Department of Pharmacology & Toxicology, School of Pharmacy, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS, USA
| | - Zi-Jun Wang
- Department of Pharmacology & Toxicology, School of Pharmacy, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS, USA; Cofrin Logan Center for Addiction Research and Treatment, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS, USA.
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Singh A, Xie Y, Davis A, Wang ZJ. Early social isolation stress increases addiction vulnerability to heroin and alters c-Fos expression in the mesocorticolimbic system. Psychopharmacology (Berl) 2022; 239:1081-1095. [PMID: 34997861 DOI: 10.1007/s00213-021-06024-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/21/2021] [Accepted: 11/04/2021] [Indexed: 01/02/2023]
Abstract
RATIONALE Adverse psychosocial factors during early childhood or adolescence compromise neural structure and brain function, inducing susceptibility for many psychiatric disorders such as substance use disorder. Nevertheless, the mechanisms underlying early life stress-induced addiction vulnerability is still unclear, especially for opioids. OBJECTIVES To address this, we used a mouse heroin self-administration model to examine how chronic early social isolation (ESI) stress (5 weeks, beginning at weaning) affects the behavioral and neural responses to heroin during adulthood. RESULTS We found that ESI stress did not alter the acquisition for sucrose or heroin self-administration, nor change the motivation for sucrose on a progressive ratio schedule. However, ESI stress induced an upward shift of heroin dose-response curve in female mice and increased motivation and seeking for heroin in both sexes. Furthermore, we examined the neuronal activity (measured by c-Fos expression) within the key brain regions of the mesocorticolimbic system, including the prelimbic cortex (PrL), infralimbic cortex (IL), nucleus accumbens (NAc) core and shell, caudate putamen, and ventral tegmental area (VTA). We found that ESI stress dampened c-Fos expression in the PrL, IL, and VTA after 14-day forced abstinence, while augmented the neuronal responses to heroin-predictive context and cue in the IL and NAc core. Moreover, ESI stress disrupted the association between c-Fos expression and attempted infusions during heroin-seeking test in the PrL. CONCLUSIONS These data indicate that ESI stress leads to increased seeking and motivation for heroin, and this may be associated with distinct changes in neuronal activities in different subregions of the mesocorticolimbic system.
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Affiliation(s)
- Archana Singh
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, School of Pharmacy, University of Kansas, 1251 Wescoe Hall Drive, Lawrence, KS, 66045, USA
| | - Yang Xie
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, School of Pharmacy, University of Kansas, 1251 Wescoe Hall Drive, Lawrence, KS, 66045, USA
| | - Ashton Davis
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, School of Pharmacy, University of Kansas, 1251 Wescoe Hall Drive, Lawrence, KS, 66045, USA
| | - Zi-Jun Wang
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, School of Pharmacy, University of Kansas, 1251 Wescoe Hall Drive, Lawrence, KS, 66045, USA.
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Ning T, Leng C, Chen L, Ma B, Gong X. Metabolomics analysis of serum in a rat heroin self-administration model undergoing reinforcement based on 1H-nuclear magnetic resonance spectra. BMC Neurosci 2018; 19:4. [PMID: 29502536 PMCID: PMC5836429 DOI: 10.1186/s12868-018-0404-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/07/2017] [Accepted: 02/03/2018] [Indexed: 01/29/2023] Open
Abstract
Background Understanding the process of relapse to abused drugs and ultimately developing treatments that can reduce the incidence of relapse remains the primary goal for the study of substance dependence. Therefore, exploring the metabolite characteristics during the relapse stage is valuable. Methods A heroin self-administered rat model was employed, and analysis of the 1H-nuclear magnetic resonance-based metabolomics was performed to investigate the characteristic metabolite profile upon reintroduction to the drug after abstinence. Results Sixteen metabolites in the serum of rats, including phospholipids, intermediates in TCA (Tricarboxylic Acid Cycle) cycle, keto bodies, and precursors for neurotransmitters, underwent a significant change in the reinstatement stage compared with those in the control group. In particular, energy production was greatly disturbed as evidenced by different aspects such as an increase in glucose and decrease in intermediates of glycolysis and the TCA cycle. The finding that the level of 3-hydroxybutyrate and acetoacetate increased significantly suggested that energy production was activated from fatty acids. The concentration of phenylalanine, glutamine, and choline, the precursors of major neurotransmitters, increased during the reinstatement stage which indicated that an alteration in neurotransmitters in the brain might occur along with the disturbance in substrate supply in the circulatory system. Conclusions Heroin reinforcement resulted in impaired energy production via different pathways, including glycolysis, the TCA cycle, keto body metabolism, etc. A disturbance in the substrate supply in the circulatory system may partly explain heroin toxicity in the central nervous system. These findings provide new insight into the mechanism underlying the relapse to heroin use. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (10.1186/s12868-018-0404-5) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tingting Ning
- College of Life Science, Jianghan University, Sanjiaohu Road, Wuhan, 430056, China.
| | - Changlong Leng
- Wuhan Institute of Biomedical Science, Jianghan University, Wuhan, 430056, China
| | - Lin Chen
- Wuhan Institute of Biomedical Science, Jianghan University, Wuhan, 430056, China
| | - Baomiao Ma
- Wuhan Institute of Biomedical Science, Jianghan University, Wuhan, 430056, China
| | - Xiaokang Gong
- Wuhan Institute of Biomedical Science, Jianghan University, Wuhan, 430056, China
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Abstract
BACKGROUND Several recent studies have investigated the choice between heroin and a non-drug alternative reinforcer in rats. A common finding in these studies is that there are large individual differences in preference, with some rats preferring heroin and some preferring the non-drug alternative. The primary goal of the present study was to determine whether individual differences in how heroin or saccharin is valued, based on demand analysis, predicts choice. METHODS Rats lever-pressed for heroin infusions and saccharin reinforcers on fixed-ratio schedules. The essential value of each reinforcer was obtained from resulting demand curves. Rats were then trained on a mutually exclusive choice procedure where pressing one lever resulted in heroin and pressing another resulted in saccharin. After seven sessions of increased access to heroin or saccharin, rats were reexposed to the demand and choice procedures. RESULTS Demand for heroin was more elastic than demand for saccharin (i.e., heroin had lower essential value than saccharin). When allowed to choose, most rats preferred saccharin. The essential value of heroin, but not saccharin, predicted preference. The essential value of both heroin and saccharin increased following a week of increased access to heroin, but similar saccharin exposure had no effect on essential value. Preference was unchanged after increased access to either reinforcer. CONCLUSION Heroin-preferring rats differed from saccharin-preferring rats in how they valued heroin, but not saccharin. To the extent that choice models addiction-related behavior, these results suggest that overvaluation of opioids specifically, rather than undervaluation of non-drug alternatives, could identify susceptible individuals.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Jung S. Kim
- Psychology Department, American University, Washington, DC
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Bossert JM, Adhikary S, St Laurent R, Marchant NJ, Wang HL, Morales M, Shaham Y. Role of projections from ventral subiculum to nucleus accumbens shell in context-induced reinstatement of heroin seeking in rats. Psychopharmacology (Berl) 2016; 233:1991-2004. [PMID: 26344108 PMCID: PMC4781679 DOI: 10.1007/s00213-015-4060-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 69] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/10/2015] [Accepted: 08/18/2015] [Indexed: 12/25/2022]
Abstract
RATIONALE AND OBJECTIVE In humans, exposure to contexts previously associated with heroin use can provoke relapse. In rats, exposure to heroin-paired contexts after extinction of drug-reinforced responding in different contexts reinstates heroin seeking. We previously demonstrated that the projections from ventral medial prefrontal cortex (vmPFC) to nucleus accumbens (NAc) shell play a role in this reinstatement. The ventral subiculum (vSub) sends glutamate projections to NAc shell and vmPFC. Here, we determined whether these projections contribute to context-induced reinstatement. METHODS We trained rats to self-administer heroin (0.05-0.1 mg/kg/infusion) for 3 h per day for 12 days; drug infusions were paired with a discrete tone-light cue. Lever pressing in the presence of the discrete cue was subsequently extinguished in a different context. We then tested the rats for reinstatement in the heroin- and extinction-associated contexts under extinction conditions. We combined Fos with the retrograde tracer Fluoro-Gold (FG) to determine projection-specific activation during the context-induced reinstatement tests. We also used anatomical disconnection procedures to determine whether the vSub → NAc shell and vSub → vmPFC projections are functionally involved in this reinstatement. RESULTS Exposure to the heroin but not the extinction context reinstated lever pressing. Context-induced reinstatement of heroin seeking was associated with increased Fos expression in vSub neurons, including those projecting to NAc shell and vmPFC. Anatomical disconnection of the vSub → NAc shell projection, but not the vSub → vmPFC projection, decreased this reinstatement. CONCLUSIONS Our data indicate that the vSub → NAc shell glutamatergic projection, but not the vSub → vmPFC projection, contributes to context-induced reinstatement of heroin seeking.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Sweta Adhikary
- Behavioral Neuroscience Branch, IRP-NIDA, NIH, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Robyn St Laurent
- Behavioral Neuroscience Branch, IRP-NIDA, NIH, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Nathan J Marchant
- Behavioral Neuroscience Branch, IRP-NIDA, NIH, Baltimore, MD, USA
- Florey Institute of Neuroscience & Mental Health, University of Melbourne, Parkville, Australia
| | - Hui-Ling Wang
- Integrative Neuroscience Branch, IRP-NIDA, NIH, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Marisela Morales
- Integrative Neuroscience Branch, IRP-NIDA, NIH, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Yavin Shaham
- Behavioral Neuroscience Branch, IRP-NIDA, NIH, Baltimore, MD, USA
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