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Emerson SD, Chevée M, Mews P, Calipari ES. The transcriptional response to acute cocaine is inverted in male mice with a history of cocaine self-administration and withdrawal throughout the mesocorticolimbic system. Mol Cell Neurosci 2023; 125:103823. [PMID: 36868542 PMCID: PMC10247534 DOI: 10.1016/j.mcn.2023.103823] [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: 11/06/2022] [Revised: 01/30/2023] [Accepted: 02/14/2023] [Indexed: 03/05/2023] Open
Abstract
A large body of work has demonstrated that cocaine-induced changes in transcriptional regulation play a central role in the onset and maintenance of cocaine use disorder. An underappreciated aspect of this area of research, however, is that the pharmacodynamic properties of cocaine can change depending on an organism's previous drug-exposure history. In this study, we utilized RNA sequencing to characterize how the transcriptome-wide effects of acute cocaine exposure were altered by a history of cocaine self-administration and long-term withdrawal (30 days) in the ventral tegmental area (VTA), nucleus accumbens (NAc), and prefrontal cortex (PFC) in male mice. First, we found that the gene expression patterns induced by a single cocaine injection (10 mg/kg) were discordant between cocaine-naïve mice and mice in withdrawal from cocaine self-administration. Specifically, the same genes that were upregulated by acute cocaine in cocaine-naïve mice were downregulated by the same dose of cocaine in mice undergoing long-term withdrawal; the same pattern of opposite regulation was observed for the genes downregulated by initial acute cocaine exposure. When we analyzed this dataset further, we found that the gene expression patterns that were induced by long-term withdrawal from cocaine self-administration showed a high degree of overlap with the gene expression patterns of acute cocaine exposure - even though animals had not consumed cocaine in 30 days. Interestingly, cocaine re-exposure at this withdrawal time point reversed this expression pattern. Finally, we found that this pattern was similar across the VTA, PFC, NAc, and within each brain region the same genes were induced by acute cocaine, re-induced during long-term withdrawal, and reversed by cocaine re-exposure. Together, we identified a longitudinal pattern of gene regulation that is conserved across the VTA, PFC, and NAc, and characterized the genes constituting this pattern in each brain region.
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Affiliation(s)
- Soren D Emerson
- Department of Pharmacology, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA; Vanderbilt Brain Institute, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA; Vanderbilt Center for Addiction Research, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA
| | - Maxime Chevée
- Department of Pharmacology, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA; Vanderbilt Brain Institute, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA; Vanderbilt Center for Addiction Research, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA
| | - Philipp Mews
- Nash Family Department of Neuroscience, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, United States of America
| | - Erin S Calipari
- Department of Pharmacology, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA; Vanderbilt Brain Institute, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA; Vanderbilt Center for Addiction Research, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA; Department of Molecular Physiology and Biophysics, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA; Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA.
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2
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Sequeira-Cordero A, Brenes JC. Time course of plasticity-related alterations following the first exposure to amphetamine in juvenile rats. Pharmacol Biochem Behav 2022; 221:173489. [PMID: 36375621 DOI: 10.1016/j.pbb.2022.173489] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/07/2022] [Revised: 10/14/2022] [Accepted: 11/08/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022]
Abstract
In vulnerable consumers, the first drug exposure induces various neurobehavioral adaptations that may represent the starting point toward addiction. Elucidating the neuroplastic mechanisms underlying that first rewarding experience would contribute to understanding the transition from recreational to compulsive drug use. In a preclinical model with juvenile rats, we analyzed the time-dependent fluctuations in the expression of neuroplasticity-related genes like the brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), its tropomyosin receptor kinase B (TrkB), the cAMP response element-binding protein (CREB), the microRNA-132, the Rho GTPase-activating protein 32 (p250GAP), the corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF), and the neurotransmitters contents in the nucleus accumbens (NAc) and the dorsal striatum (DS) 45, 90, and 180 min after an amphetamine (AMPH) injection. As expected, AMPH altered the concentration of norepinephrine, dopamine, DOPAC, and serotonin in a region- and time-dependent manner. Regarding gene expression, AMPH at 45 min upregulated BDNF and primiR-132 expression in NAc and downregulated TrkB expression in DS. At 90 min, AMPH upregulated TrkB, CREB, p250GAP, and primiR-132 expression in NAc and BDNF, primiR-132, and CRF in DS. At 180 min, only BNDF in NAc continued to be upregulated by AMPH. Based on the levels of AMPH-induced hyperactivity, we classified the rats as low and high AMPH responders. High AMPH responders characterized by overexpressing BDNF, CREB, p250GAP, and CRF in NAc and by showing lower levels of dopamine and serotonin metabolites and turnovers in both regions. Our findings demonstrated that a single AMPH administration is enough to induce neuroplastic adaptations, especially in the NAc of prone rats.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrey Sequeira-Cordero
- Instituto de Investigaciones en Salud, Universidad de Costa Rica, Costa Rica; Centro de Investigación en Neurociencias, Universidad de Costa Rica, Costa Rica
| | - Juan C Brenes
- Instituto de Investigaciones Psicológicas, Universidad de Costa Rica, Costa Rica; Centro de Investigación en Neurociencias, Universidad de Costa Rica, Costa Rica.
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3
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Functional connectivity patterns of trait empathy are associated with age. Brain Cogn 2022; 159:105859. [PMID: 35305500 DOI: 10.1016/j.bandc.2022.105859] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/28/2020] [Revised: 02/28/2022] [Accepted: 03/01/2022] [Indexed: 12/30/2022]
Abstract
Empathy is the capacity to feel and understand others' mental states. In some individuals, there is an imbalance between the affective and cognitive components of empathy, which can lead to deficits. This study investigated the functional connectivity of the anterior insula (AI) and dorsomedial prefrontal cortex (dmPFC), which play key roles in empathy, in covariation with the affective and cognitive subscales of the Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI), as a function of age and sex, as an exploratory analysis. Seed-based functional connectivity analyses were performed on 33 healthy participants that were subdivided according to their age (16 adults and 17 adolescents) and sex (16 women and 17 men). Adolescents reported lower cognitive empathy than adults and men less affective empathy than women. The connectivity of the dmPFC and AI, in covariation with the cognitive and affective subscales of empathy, respectively, differed between adolescents and adults, but was similar in men and women. Adolescents had patterns of negative covariations between the regions of interest and many brain regions associated with the default-mode and salience networks. These findings support that lower self-report levels of empathy in certain individuals could be reflected in the functional connectivity patterns of the dmPFC and AI.
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4
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Xu SJ, Lombroso SI, Fischer DK, Carpenter MD, Marchione DM, Hamilton PJ, Lim CJ, Neve RL, Garcia BA, Wimmer ME, Pierce RC, Heller EA. Chromatin-mediated alternative splicing regulates cocaine-reward behavior. Neuron 2021; 109:2943-2966.e8. [PMID: 34480866 PMCID: PMC8454057 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuron.2021.08.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/07/2020] [Revised: 06/14/2021] [Accepted: 08/10/2021] [Indexed: 10/20/2022]
Abstract
Neuronal alternative splicing is a key gene regulatory mechanism in the brain. However, the spliceosome machinery is insufficient to fully specify splicing complexity. In considering the role of the epigenome in activity-dependent alternative splicing, we and others find the histone modification H3K36me3 to be a putative splicing regulator. In this study, we found that mouse cocaine self-administration caused widespread differential alternative splicing, concomitant with the enrichment of H3K36me3 at differentially spliced junctions. Importantly, only targeted epigenetic editing can distinguish between a direct role of H3K36me3 in splicing and an indirect role via regulation of splice factor expression elsewhere on the genome. We targeted Srsf11, which was both alternatively spliced and H3K36me3 enriched in the brain following cocaine self-administration. Epigenetic editing of H3K36me3 at Srsf11 was sufficient to drive its alternative splicing and enhanced cocaine self-administration, establishing the direct causal relevance of H3K36me3 to alternative splicing of Srsf11 and to reward behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
- Song-Jun Xu
- Department of Systems Pharmacology and Translational Therapeutics, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Sonia I Lombroso
- Department of Systems Pharmacology and Translational Therapeutics, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Delaney K Fischer
- Department of Systems Pharmacology and Translational Therapeutics, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Marco D Carpenter
- Department of Systems Pharmacology and Translational Therapeutics, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Dylan M Marchione
- Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Peter J Hamilton
- Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA 23298, USA
| | - Carissa J Lim
- Department of Systems Pharmacology and Translational Therapeutics, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Rachel L Neve
- Gene Delivery Technology Core, Massachusetts General Hospital, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA
| | - Benjamin A Garcia
- Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA; Penn Epigenetics Institute, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Mathieu E Wimmer
- Department of Psychology, Temple University, Philadelphia, PA 19121, USA
| | - R Christopher Pierce
- Department of Psychiatry, Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, Rutgers University, Piscataway, NJ 08854, USA
| | - Elizabeth A Heller
- Department of Systems Pharmacology and Translational Therapeutics, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA; Institute for Translational Medicine and Therapeutics, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA,19104, USA; Penn Epigenetics Institute, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA.
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Sequeira-Cordero A, Brenes JC. Time-dependent changes in striatal monoamine levels and gene expression following single and repeated amphetamine administration in rats. Eur J Pharmacol 2021; 904:174148. [PMID: 33961872 DOI: 10.1016/j.ejphar.2021.174148] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/23/2020] [Revised: 04/23/2021] [Accepted: 04/30/2021] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
As drug addiction may result from pathological usurpations of learning and memory's neural mechanisms, we focused on the amphetamine-induced time-dependent neurochemical changes associated with neural plasticity. We used juvenile rats as the risk for drug abuse is higher during adolescence. Experiment 1 served to define the appropriate amphetamine dose and the neurochemical effects of a single administration. In experiment 2, rats received seven amphetamine or saline injections in the open-field test throughout a twelve-day period. We measured the mRNA levels of the brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), its tropomyosin receptor kinase B (TrkB), the cAMP response element-binding protein (CREB), the microRNA-132, the Rho GTPase-activating protein 32 (p250GAP), the corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF), and monoamines and amino-acids contents in the nucleus accumbens and the dorsal striatum 45, 90, and 180 min after the last injection. We found that amphetamine changed gene expression only at certain time points and in a dose and region-dependent manner. Repeated but not single administrations upregulated accumbal and striatal BDNF (180 min) and striatal pri-miR-132 (90 min) expression, while downregulated accumbal CREB levels (90 min). As only some drug users develop addiction, we compared brain parameters between low and high amphetamine responders. Prone subjects characterized by having reduced striatal 5-HT metabolism, higher accumbal BDNF and TrkB expression, and lower levels of CREB in the dorsal striatum and p250GAP in both regions. Thus, individual differences in drug-induced changes in neurotransmission and gene expression in nigrostriatal and mesolimbic dopaminergic pathways may underlie the plasticity adaptations associated with behavioral sensitization to amphetamine.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrey Sequeira-Cordero
- Instituto de Investigaciones en Salud, Universidad de Costa Rica, Costa Rica; Centro de Investigación en Neurociencias, Universidad de Costa Rica, Costa Rica.
| | - Juan C Brenes
- Instituto de Investigaciones Psicológicas, Universidad de Costa Rica, Costa Rica; Centro de Investigación en Neurociencias, Universidad de Costa Rica, Costa Rica.
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6
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Zhang K, Ji G, Zhao M, Wang Y. Candidate l-methionine target piRNA regulatory networks analysis response to cocaine-conditioned place preference in mice. Brain Behav 2021; 11:e2272. [PMID: 34196487 PMCID: PMC8413732 DOI: 10.1002/brb3.2272] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/24/2021] [Revised: 06/02/2021] [Accepted: 06/18/2021] [Indexed: 12/25/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Methionine has been proven to inhibit addictive behaviors of cocaine dependence. However, the mechanism of methionine response to cocaine CPP is unknown. Recent evidence highlights piRNAs to regulate genes via a miRNA-like mechanism. Here, next-generation sequencing is used to study mechanism on methionine response to drug-induced behaviors though piRNA. METHODS l-methionine treatment cocaine CPP animal model was used to do non-coding RNA sequencing. There were four groups to sequence: saline+saline (SS), MET+saline (MS), MET+cocaine (MC), and cocaine+saline. Combining mRNA sequencing data, the network and regulation of piRNA were analyzed with their corresponding mRNA and miRNA. RESULTS Analysis of the piRNAome reveals that piRNAs inversely regulated their target mRNA genes. KEGG analysis of DE-piRNA target mRNA genes were enriched in Morphine addiction, GABAergic synapse and Cholinergic synapse pathway. Furthermore, four significantly differential expressed genes Cacna2d3, Epha6, Nedd4l, and Vav2 were identified and regulated by piRNAs in the process of l-methionine inhibits cocaine CPP. Thereinto, Vav2 was regulated by multiple DE piRNAs by sharing the common sequence: GTCTCTCCAGCCACCTT. Meanwhile, it was found that piRNA positively regulates miRNA and three genes Bcl3, Il20ra, and Insrr were identified and regulated by piRNA through miRNA. CONCLUSION The results showed that piRNA negatively regulated target mRNA genes and positively regulated target miRNA genes. Genes located in substance dependence, signal transduction and also nervous functions pathways were identified. When taken together, these data may explain the roles of l-methionine in counteracting the effects of cocaine CPP via piRNAs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kunlin Zhang
- Institute of Psychology, CAS Key Lab of Mental Health, Beijing, China
| | - Guanyu Ji
- ShenZhen Gendo Health Technology Co., Ltd, ShenZhen, China
| | - Mei Zhao
- Institute of Psychology, CAS Key Lab of Mental Health, Beijing, China.,Department of Psychology, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Yan Wang
- Institute of Psychology, CAS Key Lab of Mental Health, Beijing, China.,Department of Psychology, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
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7
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López AJ, Johnson AR, Euston TJ, Wilson R, Nolan SO, Brady LJ, Thibeault KC, Kelly SJ, Kondev V, Melugin P, Kutlu MG, Chuang E, Lam TT, Kiraly DD, Calipari ES. Cocaine self-administration induces sex-dependent protein expression in the nucleus accumbens. Commun Biol 2021; 4:883. [PMID: 34272455 PMCID: PMC8285523 DOI: 10.1038/s42003-021-02358-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/13/2020] [Accepted: 06/16/2021] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Substance use disorder (SUD) is a chronic neuropsychiatric condition characterized by long-lasting alterations in the neural circuitry regulating reward and motivation. Substantial work has focused on characterizing the molecular substrates that underlie these persistent changes in neural function and behavior. However, this work has overwhelmingly focused on male subjects, despite mounting clinical and preclinical evidence that females demonstrate dissimilar progression to SUD and responsivity to stimulant drugs of abuse, such as cocaine. Here, we show that sex is a critical biological variable that defines drug-induced plasticity in the nucleus accumbens (NAc). Using quantitative mass spectrometry, we assessed the protein expression patterns induced by cocaine self-administration and demonstrated unique molecular profiles between males and females. We show that 1. Cocaine self-administration induces non-overlapping protein expression patterns in significantly regulated proteins in males and females and 2. Critically, cocaine-induced protein regulation differentially interacts with sex to eliminate basal sexual dimorphisms in the proteome. Finally, eliminating these baseline differences in the proteome is concomitant with the elimination of sex differences in behavior for non-drug rewards. Together, these data suggest that cocaine administration is capable of rewriting basal proteomic function and reward-associated behaviors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alberto J López
- Department of Pharmacology, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA
- Vanderbilt Center for Addiction Research, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA
- Vanderbilt Brain Institute, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA
| | - Amy R Johnson
- Department of Pharmacology, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA
- Vanderbilt Center for Addiction Research, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA
- Vanderbilt Brain Institute, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA
| | - Tanner J Euston
- Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
- Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
| | - Rashaun Wilson
- Department of Molecular Biophysics and Biochemistry, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA
- WM Keck Biotechnology Resource Laboratory, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA
| | - Suzanne O Nolan
- Department of Pharmacology, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA
- Vanderbilt Center for Addiction Research, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA
- Vanderbilt Brain Institute, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA
| | - Lillian J Brady
- Department of Pharmacology, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA
- Vanderbilt Center for Addiction Research, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA
- Vanderbilt Brain Institute, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA
| | - Kimberly C Thibeault
- Department of Pharmacology, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA
- Vanderbilt Center for Addiction Research, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA
- Vanderbilt Brain Institute, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA
| | - Shannon J Kelly
- Department of Pharmacology, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA
- Vanderbilt Center for Addiction Research, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA
- Vanderbilt Brain Institute, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA
| | - Veronika Kondev
- Department of Pharmacology, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA
- Vanderbilt Center for Addiction Research, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA
- Vanderbilt Brain Institute, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA
| | - Patrick Melugin
- Department of Pharmacology, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA
- Vanderbilt Center for Addiction Research, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA
- Vanderbilt Brain Institute, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA
| | - M Gunes Kutlu
- Department of Pharmacology, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA
- Vanderbilt Center for Addiction Research, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA
- Vanderbilt Brain Institute, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA
| | - Emily Chuang
- Department of Pharmacology, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA
- Vanderbilt Center for Addiction Research, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA
- Vanderbilt Brain Institute, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA
| | - TuKiet T Lam
- Department of Molecular Biophysics and Biochemistry, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA
- WM Keck Biotechnology Resource Laboratory, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA
- Yale/NIDA Neuroproteomics Center, New Haven, CT, USA
| | - Drew D Kiraly
- Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
- Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
- Nash Family Department of Neuroscience, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
- Seaver Center for Autism, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
| | - Erin S Calipari
- Department of Pharmacology, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA.
- Vanderbilt Center for Addiction Research, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA.
- Vanderbilt Brain Institute, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA.
- Department of Molecular Physiology and Biophysics, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA.
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN, USA.
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8
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Pribiag H, Shin S, Wang EHJ, Sun F, Datta P, Okamoto A, Guss H, Jain A, Wang XY, De Freitas B, Honma P, Pate S, Lilascharoen V, Li Y, Lim BK. Ventral pallidum DRD3 potentiates a pallido-habenular circuit driving accumbal dopamine release and cocaine seeking. Neuron 2021; 109:2165-2182.e10. [PMID: 34048697 PMCID: PMC9013317 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuron.2021.05.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/05/2020] [Revised: 04/01/2021] [Accepted: 05/04/2021] [Indexed: 01/18/2023]
Abstract
Drugs of abuse induce persistent remodeling of reward circuit function, a process thought to underlie the emergence of drug craving and relapse to drug use. However, how circuit-specific, drug-induced molecular and cellular plasticity can have distributed effects on the mesolimbic dopamine reward system to facilitate relapse to drug use is not fully elucidated. Here, we demonstrate that dopamine receptor D3 (DRD3)-dependent plasticity in the ventral pallidum (VP) drives potentiation of dopamine release in the nucleus accumbens during relapse to cocaine seeking after abstinence. We show that two distinct VP DRD3+ neuronal populations projecting to either the lateral habenula (LHb) or the ventral tegmental area (VTA) display different patterns of activity during drug seeking following abstinence from cocaine self-administration and that selective suppression of elevated activity or DRD3 signaling in the LHb-projecting population reduces drug seeking. Together, our results uncover how circuit-specific DRD3-mediated plasticity contributes to the process of drug relapse.
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Affiliation(s)
- Horia Pribiag
- Neurobiology Section, Division of Biological Sciences, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92093, USA
| | - Sora Shin
- Neurobiology Section, Division of Biological Sciences, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92093, USA; Center for Neurobiology Research, Fralin Biomedical Research Institute at Virginia Tech Carilion, Virginia Tech, Roanoke, VA 24016, USA; Department of Human Nutrition, Foods, and Exercise, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA 24061, USA
| | - Eric Hou-Jen Wang
- Neurobiology Section, Division of Biological Sciences, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92093, USA; Biomedical Sciences Graduate Program, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92093, USA
| | - Fangmiao Sun
- State Key Laboratory of Membrane Biology, Peking University School of Life Sciences, 100871 10 Beijing, China; PKU-IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, 100871 Beijing, China
| | - Paul Datta
- Neurobiology Section, Division of Biological Sciences, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92093, USA
| | - Alexander Okamoto
- Neurobiology Section, Division of Biological Sciences, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92093, USA
| | - Hayden Guss
- Neurobiology Section, Division of Biological Sciences, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92093, USA
| | - Akanksha Jain
- Neurobiology Section, Division of Biological Sciences, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92093, USA
| | - Xiao-Yun Wang
- Neurobiology Section, Division of Biological Sciences, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92093, USA
| | - Bruna De Freitas
- Neurobiology Section, Division of Biological Sciences, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92093, USA
| | - Patrick Honma
- Neurobiology Section, Division of Biological Sciences, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92093, USA
| | - Stefan Pate
- Neurobiology Section, Division of Biological Sciences, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92093, USA
| | - Varoth Lilascharoen
- Neurobiology Section, Division of Biological Sciences, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92093, USA; Biological Sciences Graduate Program, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92093, USA
| | - Yulong Li
- State Key Laboratory of Membrane Biology, Peking University School of Life Sciences, 100871 10 Beijing, China; PKU-IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, 100871 Beijing, China
| | - Byung Kook Lim
- Neurobiology Section, Division of Biological Sciences, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92093, USA; Biomedical Sciences Graduate Program, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92093, USA; Biological Sciences Graduate Program, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92093, USA.
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9
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Cocaine-related DNA methylation in caudate neurons alters 3D chromatin structure of the IRXA gene cluster. Mol Psychiatry 2021; 26:3134-3151. [PMID: 33046833 PMCID: PMC8039060 DOI: 10.1038/s41380-020-00909-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/23/2020] [Revised: 09/14/2020] [Accepted: 10/01/2020] [Indexed: 02/01/2023]
Abstract
Epigenetic mechanisms, like those involving DNA methylation, are thought to mediate the relationship between chronic cocaine dependence and molecular changes in addiction-related neurocircuitry, but have been understudied in human brain. We initially used reduced representation bisulfite sequencing (RRBS) to generate a methylome-wide profile of cocaine dependence in human post-mortem caudate tissue. We focused on the Iroquois Homeobox A (IRXA) gene cluster, where hypomethylation in exon 3 of IRX2 in neuronal nuclei was associated with cocaine dependence. We replicated this finding in an independent cohort and found similar results in the dorsal striatum from cocaine self-administering mice. Using epigenome editing and 3C assays, we demonstrated a causal relationship between methylation within the IRX2 gene body, CTCF protein binding, three-dimensional (3D) chromatin interaction, and gene expression. Together, these findings suggest that cocaine-related hypomethylation of IRX2 contributes to the development and maintenance of cocaine dependence through alterations in 3D chromatin structure in the caudate nucleus.
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10
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Huebschman JL, Davis MC, Tovar Pensa C, Guo Y, Smith LN. The fragile X mental retardation protein promotes adjustments in cocaine self-administration that preserve reinforcement level. Eur J Neurosci 2021; 54:4920-4933. [PMID: 34133054 DOI: 10.1111/ejn.15356] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/26/2019] [Revised: 05/08/2021] [Accepted: 06/08/2021] [Indexed: 01/29/2023]
Abstract
The fragile X mental retardation protein (FMRP), an RNA-binding protein, regulates cocaine-induced neuronal plasticity and is critical for the normal development of drug-induced locomotor sensitization, as well as reward-related learning in the conditioned place preference assay. However, it is unknown whether FMRP impacts behaviors that are used to more closely model substance use disorders. Utilizing a cocaine intravenous self-administration (IVSA) assay in Fmr1 knockout (KO) and wild-type (WT) littermate mice, we find that, despite normal acquisition and extinction learning, Fmr1 KO mice fail to make a normal upward shift in responding during dose-response testing. Later, when given access to the original acquisition dose under increasing fixed ratio (FR) schedules of reinforcement (FR1, FR3, and FR5), Fmr1 KO mice earn significantly fewer cocaine infusions than WT mice. Importantly, similar deficits are not present in operant conditioning using a palatable food reinforcer, indicating that our results do not represent broad learning or reward-related deficits in Fmr1 KO mice. Additionally, we find an FMRP target, the activity-regulated cytoskeleton-associated protein (Arc), to be significantly reduced in synaptic cellular fractions prepared from the nucleus accumbens of Fmr1 KO, compared with WT, mice following operant tasks reinforced with cocaine but not food. Overall, our findings suggest that FMRP facilitates adjustments in drug self-administration behavior that generally serve to preserve reinforcement level, and combined with our similar IVSA findings in Arc KO mice may implicate Arc, along with FMRP, in behavioral shifts that occur in drug taking when drug availability is altered.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jessica L Huebschman
- Department of Neuroscience and Experimental Therapeutics, Texas A&M University Health Science Center, Bryan, Texas, USA.,Texas A&M Institute for Neuroscience, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas, USA
| | - Megan C Davis
- Department of Neuroscience and Experimental Therapeutics, Texas A&M University Health Science Center, Bryan, Texas, USA
| | - Catherina Tovar Pensa
- Department of Neuroscience and Experimental Therapeutics, Texas A&M University Health Science Center, Bryan, Texas, USA
| | - Yuhong Guo
- Department of Neuroscience and Experimental Therapeutics, Texas A&M University Health Science Center, Bryan, Texas, USA
| | - Laura N Smith
- Department of Neuroscience and Experimental Therapeutics, Texas A&M University Health Science Center, Bryan, Texas, USA.,Texas A&M Institute for Neuroscience, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas, USA
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11
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Transcriptional signatures in prefrontal cortex confer vulnerability versus resilience to food and cocaine addiction-like behavior. Sci Rep 2021; 11:9076. [PMID: 33907201 PMCID: PMC8079697 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-021-88363-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/04/2021] [Accepted: 03/26/2021] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Addiction is a chronic relapsing brain disease characterized by compulsive reward-seeking despite harmful consequences. The mechanisms underlying addiction are orchestrated by transcriptional reprogramming in the reward system of vulnerable subjects. This study aims at revealing gene expression alterations across different types of addiction. We analyzed publicly available transcriptome datasets of the prefrontal cortex (PFC) from a palatable food and a cocaine addiction study. We found 56 common genes upregulated in the PFC of addicted mice in these two studies, whereas most of the differentially expressed genes were exclusively linked to either palatable food or cocaine addiction. Gene ontology analysis of shared genes revealed that these genes contribute to learning and memory, dopaminergic synaptic transmission, and histone phosphorylation. Network analysis of shared genes revealed a protein–protein interaction node among the G protein-coupled receptors (Drd2, Drd1, Adora2a, Gpr6, Gpr88) and downstream targets of the cAMP signaling pathway (Ppp1rb1, Rgs9, Pde10a) as a core network in addiction. Upon extending the analysis to a cell-type specific level, some of these common molecular players were selectively expressed in excitatory neurons, oligodendrocytes, and endothelial cells. Overall, computational analysis of publicly available whole transcriptome datasets provides new insights into the molecular basis of addiction-like behaviors in PFC.
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12
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Mukherjee D, Gonzales BJ, Ashwal-Fluss R, Turm H, Groysman M, Citri A. Egr2 induction in spiny projection neurons of the ventrolateral striatum contributes to cocaine place preference in mice. eLife 2021; 10:65228. [PMID: 33724178 PMCID: PMC8057818 DOI: 10.7554/elife.65228] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/26/2020] [Accepted: 03/15/2021] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Drug addiction develops due to brain-wide plasticity within neuronal ensembles, mediated by dynamic gene expression. Though the most common approach to identify such ensembles relies on immediate early gene expression, little is known of how the activity of these genes is linked to modified behavior observed following repeated drug exposure. To address this gap, we present a broad-to-specific approach, beginning with a comprehensive investigation of brain-wide cocaine-driven gene expression, through the description of dynamic spatial patterns of gene induction in subregions of the striatum, and finally address functionality of region-specific gene induction in the development of cocaine preference. Our findings reveal differential cell-type specific dynamic transcriptional recruitment patterns within two subdomains of the dorsal striatum following repeated cocaine exposure. Furthermore, we demonstrate that induction of the IEG Egr2 in the ventrolateral striatum, as well as the cells within which it is expressed, are required for the development of cocaine seeking. The human brain is ever changing, constantly rewiring itself in response to new experiences, knowledge or information from the environment. Addictive drugs such as cocaine can hijack the genetic mechanisms responsible for this plasticity, creating dangerous, obsessive drug-seeking and consuming behaviors. Cocaine-induced plasticity is difficult to apprehend, however, as brain regions or even cell populations can react differently to the compound. For instance, sub-regions in the striatum – the brain area that responds to rewards and helps to plan movement – show distinct responses during progressive exposure to cocaine. And while researchers know that the drug immediately changes how neurons switch certain genes on and off, it is still unclear how these genetic modifications later affect behavior. Mukherjee, Gonzales et al. explored these questions at different scales, first focusing on how progressive cocaine exposure changed the way various gene programs were activated across the entire brain. This revealed that programs in the striatum were the most affected by the drug. Examining this region more closely showed that cocaine switches on genes in specific ‘spiny projection’ neuron populations, depending on where these cells are located and the drug history of the mouse. Finally, Mukherjee, Gonzales et al. used genetically modified mice to piece together cocaine exposure, genetic changes and modifications in behavior. These experiments revealed that the drive to seek cocaine depended on activation of the Egr2 gene in populations of spiny projection neurons in a specific sub-region of the striatum. The gene, which codes for a protein that regulates how genes are switched on and off, was itself strongly activated by cocaine intake. Cocaine addiction can have devastating consequences for individuals. Grasping how this drug alters the brain could pave the way for new treatments, while also providing information on the basic mechanisms underlying brain plasticity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Diptendu Mukherjee
- The Edmond and Lily Safra Center for Brain Sciences, Jerusalem, Israel.,Institute of Life Sciences, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel
| | - Ben Jerry Gonzales
- The Edmond and Lily Safra Center for Brain Sciences, Jerusalem, Israel.,Institute of Life Sciences, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel
| | - Reut Ashwal-Fluss
- The Edmond and Lily Safra Center for Brain Sciences, Jerusalem, Israel
| | - Hagit Turm
- The Edmond and Lily Safra Center for Brain Sciences, Jerusalem, Israel.,Institute of Life Sciences, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel
| | - Maya Groysman
- The Edmond and Lily Safra Center for Brain Sciences, Jerusalem, Israel
| | - Ami Citri
- The Edmond and Lily Safra Center for Brain Sciences, Jerusalem, Israel.,Institute of Life Sciences, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel.,Program in Child and Brain Development, Canadian Institute for Advanced Research, MaRS Centre, Toronto, Canada
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13
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Salery M, Godino A, Nestler EJ. Drug-activated cells: From immediate early genes to neuronal ensembles in addiction. ADVANCES IN PHARMACOLOGY (SAN DIEGO, CALIF.) 2021; 90:173-216. [PMID: 33706932 DOI: 10.1016/bs.apha.2020.09.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
Beyond their rapid rewarding effects, drugs of abuse can durably alter an individual's response to their environment as illustrated by the compulsive drug seeking and risk of relapse triggered by drug-associated stimuli. The persistence of these associations even long after cessation of drug use demonstrates the enduring mark left by drugs on brain reward circuits. However, within these circuits, neuronal populations are differently affected by drug exposure and growing evidence indicates that relatively small subsets of neurons might be involved in the encoding and expression of drug-mediated associations. The identification of sparse neuronal populations recruited in response to drug exposure has benefited greatly from the study of immediate early genes (IEGs) whose induction is critical in initiating plasticity programs in recently activated neurons. In particular, the development of technologies to manipulate IEG-expressing cells has been fundamental to implicate broadly distributed neuronal ensembles coincidently activated by either drugs or drug-associated stimuli and to then causally establish their involvement in drug responses. In this review, we summarize the literature regarding IEG regulation in different learning paradigms and addiction models to highlight their role as a marker of activity and plasticity. As the exploration of neuronal ensembles in addiction improves our understanding of drug-associated memory encoding, it also raises several questions regarding the cellular and molecular characteristics of these discrete neuronal populations as they become incorporated in drug-associated neuronal ensembles. We review recent efforts towards this goal and discuss how they will offer a more comprehensive understanding of addiction pathophysiology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marine Salery
- Nash Family Department of Neuroscience and Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, United States
| | - Arthur Godino
- Nash Family Department of Neuroscience and Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, United States
| | - Eric J Nestler
- Nash Family Department of Neuroscience and Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, United States.
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14
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Kim S, Jang WJ, Yu H, Ryu IS, Jeong CH, Lee S. Integrated Non-targeted and Targeted Metabolomics Uncovers Dynamic Metabolic Effects during Short-Term Abstinence in Methamphetamine Self-Administering Rats. J Proteome Res 2019; 18:3913-3925. [PMID: 31525931 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jproteome.9b00363] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/26/2022]
Abstract
Persistent neurochemical disturbances by repeating drug reward and withdrawal lead to addiction. Particularly, drug withdrawal, usually starting within hours of the last dose, is considered as a critical step in the transition to addiction and a treatment clue. The aim of this study was to uncover metabolic effects associated with methamphetamine (MA) short-term abstinence using both non-targeted and targeted metabolomics. Metabolic alterations were investigated in rat plasma collected immediately after 16 days of MA self-administration and after 12 and 24 h of abstinence. Principal component analysis revealed that the highest level of separation occurred between the 24 h and saline (control) groups based on the significantly changed ion features, 257/320/333 and 331/409/388, in the SA/12 h/24 h groups in positive and negative modes of UPLC-QTOF-ESI-MS, respectively. Targeted metabolomics revealed dynamic changes in the biosynthesis/metabolism of amino acids, including the phenylalanine, tyrosine, and tryptophan biosynthesis and the valine, leucine, and isoleucine biosynthesis. Integrating non-targeted and targeted metabolomics data uncovered rapid and distinct changes in the metabolic pathways involved in energy metabolism, the nervous system, and membrane lipid metabolism. These findings provide essential knowledge of the dynamic metabolic effects associated with short-term MA abstinence and may help identify early warning signs of MA dependence.
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Affiliation(s)
- Suji Kim
- College of Pharmacy , Keimyung University , 1095 Dalgubeoldaero , Dalseo-gu, Daegu 42601 , Republic of Korea
| | - Won-Jun Jang
- College of Pharmacy , Keimyung University , 1095 Dalgubeoldaero , Dalseo-gu, Daegu 42601 , Republic of Korea
| | - Hyerim Yu
- New Drug Development Center , 123 Osongsaengmyeongro, Osong-eup , Heungdeok-gu, Cheongju , Chungcheongbuk-do 28160 , Republic of Korea
| | - In Soo Ryu
- Substance Abuse Pharmacology Group , Korea Institute of Toxicology , 141 Gajeong-ro , Yuseong-gu, Daegeon , 34114 , Republic of Korea
| | - Chul-Ho Jeong
- College of Pharmacy , Keimyung University , 1095 Dalgubeoldaero , Dalseo-gu, Daegu 42601 , Republic of Korea
| | - Sooyeun Lee
- College of Pharmacy , Keimyung University , 1095 Dalgubeoldaero , Dalseo-gu, Daegu 42601 , Republic of Korea
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15
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Werner CT, Mitra S, Martin JA, Stewart AF, Lepack AE, Ramakrishnan A, Gobira PH, Wang ZJ, Neve RL, Gancarz AM, Shen L, Maze I, Dietz DM. Ubiquitin-proteasomal regulation of chromatin remodeler INO80 in the nucleus accumbens mediates persistent cocaine craving. SCIENCE ADVANCES 2019; 5:eaay0351. [PMID: 31633032 PMCID: PMC6785264 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.aay0351] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/15/2019] [Accepted: 09/14/2019] [Indexed: 05/07/2023]
Abstract
Neuroadaptations in the nucleus accumbens (NAc) underlie cue-induced cocaine craving that intensifies ("incubates") during abstinence and is believed to contribute to persistent relapse vulnerability. Changes in gene expression often govern perpetual behavioral abnormalities, but epigenetic plasticity during prolonged abstinence from drug exposure is poorly understood. We examined how E3 ubiquitin ligase TRIM3 dysregulates chromatin remodeler INO80 to mediate cocaine craving during prolonged abstinence. We found that INO80 expression increased in the NAc on abstinence day 30 (AD30) but not on AD1 following cocaine self-administration. Furthermore, TRIM3, which mediates degradation of INO80, was reduced on AD30, along with TRIM3-INO80 interaction. Viral-mediated gene transfer of INO80 or TRIM3 governed cocaine craving during prolonged abstinence. Lastly, chromatin immunoprecipitation followed by massively parallel DNA sequencing identified INO80-mediated transcriptional regulation of predicted pathways associated with cocaine plasticity. Together, these results demonstrate a novel ubiquitin-proteasomal-epigenetic mechanism by which TRIM3-INO80 mediates cocaine craving during prolonged abstinence.
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Affiliation(s)
- C. T. Werner
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Program in Neuroscience, Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, The State University of New York at Buffalo, Buffalo, NY, USA
| | - S. Mitra
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Program in Neuroscience, Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, The State University of New York at Buffalo, Buffalo, NY, USA
| | - J. A. Martin
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Program in Neuroscience, Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, The State University of New York at Buffalo, Buffalo, NY, USA
| | - A. F. Stewart
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Program in Neuroscience, Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, The State University of New York at Buffalo, Buffalo, NY, USA
| | - A. E. Lepack
- Fishberg Department of Neuroscience, Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
| | - A. Ramakrishnan
- Fishberg Department of Neuroscience, Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
| | - P. H. Gobira
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Program in Neuroscience, Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, The State University of New York at Buffalo, Buffalo, NY, USA
- Department of Physics and Chemistry, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences of Ribeirão Preto, University of São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Z.-J. Wang
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Program in Neuroscience, Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, The State University of New York at Buffalo, Buffalo, NY, USA
| | - R. L. Neve
- Gene Delivery Technology Core, Massachusetts General Hospital, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - A. M. Gancarz
- Department of Psychology, California State University, Bakersfield, Bakersfield, CA, USA
| | - L. Shen
- Fishberg Department of Neuroscience, Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
| | - I. Maze
- Fishberg Department of Neuroscience, Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
- Department of Pharmacological Sciences, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
| | - D. M. Dietz
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Program in Neuroscience, Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, The State University of New York at Buffalo, Buffalo, NY, USA
- Department of Psychology, The State University of New York at Buffalo, Buffalo, NY, USA
- Corresponding author.
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16
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Walker DM, Cates HM, Loh YHE, Purushothaman I, Ramakrishnan A, Cahill KM, Lardner CK, Godino A, Kronman HG, Rabkin J, Lorsch ZS, Mews P, Doyle MA, Feng J, Labonté B, Koo JW, Bagot RC, Logan RW, Seney ML, Calipari ES, Shen L, Nestler EJ. Cocaine Self-administration Alters Transcriptome-wide Responses in the Brain's Reward Circuitry. Biol Psychiatry 2018; 84:867-880. [PMID: 29861096 PMCID: PMC6202276 DOI: 10.1016/j.biopsych.2018.04.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 107] [Impact Index Per Article: 17.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/16/2017] [Revised: 03/15/2018] [Accepted: 04/17/2018] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Global changes in gene expression underlying circuit and behavioral dysregulation associated with cocaine addiction remain incompletely understood. Here, we show how a history of cocaine self-administration (SA) reprograms transcriptome-wide responses throughout the brain's reward circuitry at baseline and in response to context and/or cocaine re-exposure after prolonged withdrawal (WD). METHODS We assigned male mice to one of six groups: saline/cocaine SA + 24-hour WD or saline/cocaine SA + 30-day WD + an acute saline/cocaine challenge within the previous drug-paired context. RNA sequencing was conducted on six interconnected brain reward regions. Using pattern analysis of gene expression and factor analysis of behavior, we identified genes that are strongly associated with addiction-related behaviors and uniquely altered by a history of cocaine SA. We then identified potential upstream regulators of these genes. RESULTS We focused on three patterns of gene expression that reflect responses to 1) acute cocaine, 2) context re-exposure, and 3) drug + context re-exposure. These patterns revealed region-specific regulation of gene expression. Further analysis revealed that each of these gene expression patterns correlated with an addiction index-a composite score of several addiction-like behaviors during cocaine SA-in a region-specific manner. Cyclic adenosine monophosphate response element binding protein and nuclear receptor families were identified as key upstream regulators of genes associated with such behaviors. CONCLUSIONS This comprehensive picture of transcriptome-wide regulation in the brain's reward circuitry by cocaine SA and prolonged WD provides new insight into the molecular basis of cocaine addiction, which will guide future studies of the key molecular pathways involved.
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Affiliation(s)
- Deena M Walker
- Fishberg Department of Neuroscience and Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York
| | - Hannah M Cates
- Fishberg Department of Neuroscience and Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York
| | - Yong-Hwee E Loh
- Fishberg Department of Neuroscience and Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York
| | - Immanuel Purushothaman
- Fishberg Department of Neuroscience and Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York
| | - Aarthi Ramakrishnan
- Fishberg Department of Neuroscience and Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York
| | - Kelly M Cahill
- Department of Biostatistics, Graduate School of Public Health, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
| | - Casey K Lardner
- Fishberg Department of Neuroscience and Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York
| | - Arthur Godino
- Fishberg Department of Neuroscience and Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York
| | - Hope G Kronman
- Fishberg Department of Neuroscience and Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York
| | - Jacqui Rabkin
- Fishberg Department of Neuroscience and Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York
| | - Zachary S Lorsch
- Fishberg Department of Neuroscience and Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York
| | - Philipp Mews
- Fishberg Department of Neuroscience and Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York
| | - Marie A Doyle
- Fishberg Department of Neuroscience and Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York
| | - Jian Feng
- Fishberg Department of Neuroscience and Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York
| | - Benoit Labonté
- Fishberg Department of Neuroscience and Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York
| | - Ja Wook Koo
- Fishberg Department of Neuroscience and Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York
| | - Rosemary C Bagot
- Fishberg Department of Neuroscience and Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York
| | - Ryan W Logan
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Pittsburgh Medical School, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; Translational Neuroscience Program, University of Pittsburgh Medical School, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; Center for Systems Neurogenetics of Addiction, The Jackson Laboratory, Bar Harbor, Maine
| | - Marianne L Seney
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Pittsburgh Medical School, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; Translational Neuroscience Program, University of Pittsburgh Medical School, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
| | - Erin S Calipari
- Department of Pharmacology, Vanderbilt Center for Addiction Research, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, Tennessee.
| | - Li Shen
- Fishberg Department of Neuroscience and Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York
| | - Eric J Nestler
- Fishberg Department of Neuroscience and Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York.
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17
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Ploense KL, Li X, Baker-Andresen D, Carr AE, Woodward N, Bagley J, Szumlinski KK, Bredy TW, Kippin TE. Prolonged-access to cocaine induces distinct Homer2 DNA methylation, hydroxymethylation, and transcriptional profiles in the dorsomedial prefrontal cortex of Male Sprague-Dawley rats. Neuropharmacology 2018; 143:299-305. [PMID: 30268522 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropharm.2018.09.029] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/14/2018] [Revised: 09/17/2018] [Accepted: 09/20/2018] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Abstract
Repeated cocaine administration induces many long-term structural and molecular changes in the dorsal medial prefrontal cortex (dmPFC) and are known to underlie aspects of cocaine-seeking behavior. DNA methylation is a key long-lasting epigenetic determinant of gene expression and is implicated in neuroplasticity, however, the extent to which this epigenetic modification is involved in the neuroplasticity associated with drug addiction has received limited attention. Here, we examine the relation between DNA methylation and gene expression within the dorsal medial prefrontal cortex (dmPFC) following limited cocaine self-administration (1 h/day), prolonged cocaine self-administration (6 h/day), and saline self-administration (1 h/day). Rats were fitted with intravenous catheters and allowed to lever press for saline or cocaine (0.25 mg/kg/0.1 mL infusion) in the different access conditions for 20 days. Prolonged-access rats exhibited escalation in cocaine intake over the course of training, while limited-access rats did not escalate cocaine intake. Additionally, limited-access and prolonged-access rats exhibited unique Homer2 epigenetic profiles and mRNA expression. In prolonged-access rats, Homer2 mRNA levels in the dmPFC were increased, which was accompanied by decreased DNA methylation and p300 binding within the Homer2 promoter. Limited-access animals exhibited decreased DNA methylation, decreased DNA hydroxymethylation, and increased p300 binding within the Homer2 promoter. These data indicate that distinct epigenetic profiles are induced by limited-versus prolonged-access self-administration conditions that contribute to transcriptional profiles and lend support to the notion that covalent modification of DNA is implicated in addiction-like changes in cocaine-seeking behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kyle L Ploense
- Department of Psychological & Brain Sciences, University of California, Santa Barbara, CA, USA; Institute for Collaborative Biotechnology, University of California, Santa Barbara, CA, USA; Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry, University of California, Santa Barbara, CA, USA.
| | - Xiang Li
- Queensland Brain Institute, University of Queensland, St Lucia, QLD, Australia
| | | | - Amanda E Carr
- Department of Psychological & Brain Sciences, University of California, Santa Barbara, CA, USA
| | - Nick Woodward
- Department of Psychological & Brain Sciences, University of California, Santa Barbara, CA, USA
| | - Jared Bagley
- Department of Psychological & Brain Sciences, University of California, Santa Barbara, CA, USA; Department of Psychology, Binghamton University, Binghamton, NY, USA
| | - Karen K Szumlinski
- Department of Psychological & Brain Sciences, University of California, Santa Barbara, CA, USA; Neuroscience Research Institute, University of California, Santa Barbara, CA, USA; Department of Molecular Cellular Developmental Biology, University of California, Santa Barbara, CA, USA
| | - Timothy W Bredy
- Queensland Brain Institute, University of Queensland, St Lucia, QLD, Australia
| | - Tod E Kippin
- Department of Psychological & Brain Sciences, University of California, Santa Barbara, CA, USA; Neuroscience Research Institute, University of California, Santa Barbara, CA, USA; Department of Molecular Cellular Developmental Biology, University of California, Santa Barbara, CA, USA; Institute for Collaborative Biotechnology, University of California, Santa Barbara, CA, USA
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18
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De Sa Nogueira D, Merienne K, Befort K. Neuroepigenetics and addictive behaviors: Where do we stand? Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2018; 106:58-72. [PMID: 30205119 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2018.08.018] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/19/2018] [Revised: 07/28/2018] [Accepted: 08/29/2018] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
Abstract
Substance use disorders involve long-term changes in the brain that lead to compulsive drug seeking, craving, and a high probability of relapse. Recent findings have highlighted the role of epigenetic regulations in controlling chromatin access and regulation of gene expression following exposure to drugs of abuse. In the present review, we focus on data investigating genome-wide epigenetic modifications in the brain of addicted patients or in rodent models exposed to drugs of abuse, with a particular focus on DNA methylation and histone modifications associated with transcriptional studies. We highlight critical factors for epigenomic studies in addiction. We discuss new findings related to psychostimulants, alcohol, opiate, nicotine and cannabinoids. We examine the possible transmission of these changes across generations. We highlight developing tools, specifically those that allow investigation of structural reorganization of the chromatin. These have the potential to increase our understanding of alteration of chromatin architecture at gene regulatory regions. Neuroepigenetic mechanisms involved in addictive behaviors could explain persistent phenotypic effects of drugs and, in particular, vulnerability to relapse.
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Affiliation(s)
- David De Sa Nogueira
- Laboratoire de Neurosciences Cognitives et Adaptatives (LNCA), UMR 7364, CNRS, Université de Strasbourg, Team 3 « Abuse of Drugs and Neuroadaptations », Faculté de Psychologie, 12 rue Goethe, F-67000, France
| | - Karine Merienne
- Laboratoire de Neurosciences Cognitives et Adaptatives (LNCA), UMR 7364, CNRS, Université de Strasbourg, Team 1 « Dynamics of Memory and Epigenetics », Faculté de Psychologie, 12 rue Goethe, F-67000, France
| | - Katia Befort
- Laboratoire de Neurosciences Cognitives et Adaptatives (LNCA), UMR 7364, CNRS, Université de Strasbourg, Team 3 « Abuse of Drugs and Neuroadaptations », Faculté de Psychologie, 12 rue Goethe, F-67000, France.
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19
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Vaillancourt K, Ernst C, Mash D, Turecki G. DNA Methylation Dynamics and Cocaine in the Brain: Progress and Prospects. Genes (Basel) 2017; 8:genes8050138. [PMID: 28498318 PMCID: PMC5448012 DOI: 10.3390/genes8050138] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/08/2017] [Accepted: 04/04/2017] [Indexed: 12/27/2022] Open
Abstract
Cytosine modifications, including DNA methylation, are stable epigenetic marks that may translate environmental change into transcriptional regulation. Research has begun to investigate DNA methylation dynamics in relation to cocaine use disorders. Specifically, DNA methylation machinery, including methyltransferases and binding proteins, are dysregulated in brain reward pathways after chronic cocaine exposure. In addition, numerous methylome-wide and candidate promoter studies have identified differential methylation, at the nucleotide level, in rodent models of cocaine abuse and drug seeking behavior. This review highlights the current progress in the field of cocaine-related methylation, and offers considerations for future research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kathryn Vaillancourt
- Department of Psychiatry, McGill Group for Suicide Studies, Douglas Mental Health University Institute, McGill University, Verdun, QC H4H 1R3, Canada.
| | - Carl Ernst
- Department of Psychiatry, McGill Group for Suicide Studies, Douglas Mental Health University Institute, McGill University, Verdun, QC H4H 1R3, Canada.
| | - Deborah Mash
- Department of Neurology, University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, University of Miami, Coral Gables, FL 33146, USA.
| | - Gustavo Turecki
- Department of Psychiatry, McGill Group for Suicide Studies, Douglas Mental Health University Institute, McGill University, Verdun, QC H4H 1R3, Canada.
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20
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Sadakierska-Chudy A, Frankowska M, Wydra K, Jastrzębska J, Miszkiel J, Filip M. Increased 5-hydroxymethylation levels in the hippocampus of rat extinguished from cocaine self-administration. Hippocampus 2017; 27:811-821. [PMID: 28422379 DOI: 10.1002/hipo.22733] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/16/2017] [Revised: 04/09/2017] [Accepted: 04/12/2017] [Indexed: 12/25/2022]
Abstract
Drug craving and relapse risk during abstinence from cocaine are thought to be caused by persistent changes in transcription and chromatin regulation. Although several brain regions are involved in these processes, the hippocampus seems to play an important role in context-evoked craving and drug-seeking behavior. Only a few studies have examined epigenetic alterations during a period of cocaine abstinence. To investigate the effects of cocaine abstinence on DNA methylation and gene expression, rats that self-administered the drug underwent cocaine abstinence in two time points with extinction training. During the cocaine extinction, we observed elevated global 5-hydroxymethylcytosine(5-hmC) levels with a concurrent increase in Tet3 transcript levels. Moreover, we did not find significant alterations in the levels of Tet3 mRNA and 5-hmC in rats subjected to cocaine abstinence without extinction training. Additionally, our findings demonstrated that the expression of Tet3 target genes was activated. Besides, altered DNA methylation was detected at promoter regions of miRNAs, such as miR-30d and miR-let7i. Further in silico analysis provided evidence that these two molecules targeted the 3' UTR region of the Tet3 gene and thus may contribute to its post-transcriptional regulation. This study has presented novel findings in the hippocampus of rats that underwent extinction training following cocaine self-administration. The alterations in the Tet3 gene expression and the level of 5-hmC may play an important role in extinction learning and the reduction of subsequent cocaine seeking.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anna Sadakierska-Chudy
- Department of Pharmacology, Laboratory of Drug Addiction Pharmacology, Institute of Pharmacology Polish Academy of Sciences, ul. Smetna 12, Krakow, 31-343, Poland
| | - Małgorzata Frankowska
- Department of Pharmacology, Laboratory of Drug Addiction Pharmacology, Institute of Pharmacology Polish Academy of Sciences, ul. Smetna 12, Krakow, 31-343, Poland
| | - Karolina Wydra
- Department of Pharmacology, Laboratory of Drug Addiction Pharmacology, Institute of Pharmacology Polish Academy of Sciences, ul. Smetna 12, Krakow, 31-343, Poland
| | - Joanna Jastrzębska
- Department of Pharmacology, Laboratory of Drug Addiction Pharmacology, Institute of Pharmacology Polish Academy of Sciences, ul. Smetna 12, Krakow, 31-343, Poland
| | - Joanna Miszkiel
- Department of Pharmacology, Laboratory of Drug Addiction Pharmacology, Institute of Pharmacology Polish Academy of Sciences, ul. Smetna 12, Krakow, 31-343, Poland
| | - Małgorzata Filip
- Department of Pharmacology, Laboratory of Drug Addiction Pharmacology, Institute of Pharmacology Polish Academy of Sciences, ul. Smetna 12, Krakow, 31-343, Poland
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Li M, Xu P, Xu Y, Teng H, Tian W, Du Q, Zhao M. Dynamic Expression Changes in the Transcriptome of the Prefrontal Cortex after Repeated Exposure to Cocaine in Mice. Front Pharmacol 2017; 8:142. [PMID: 28386228 PMCID: PMC5362609 DOI: 10.3389/fphar.2017.00142] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/13/2016] [Accepted: 03/07/2017] [Indexed: 01/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Prefrontal cortex (PFC)-dependent functions, such as executive function, explicit learning, and memory, are negatively affected in cocaine abusers and experimental animal models of cocaine treatment. However, its molecular mechanisms are less understood. In the present study, we performed transcriptome profiling of the dynamic changes in the PFC after repeated cocaine administration in mice. We found 463, 14, and 535 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) at 2 h, 24 h, and 7 days, respectively, after the withdrawal of chronic cocaine treatment. Time-series correlation analysis identified 5 clusters of statistically significant expression patterns. The expression levels of DEGs in Clusters 1 and 5 exhibited a gradual or fluctuant decrease, Cluster 2 exhibited an initial increase followed by a decrease or return to the baseline level, and Clusters 3 and 4 exhibited a fluctuant increase in the expression of DEGs. The Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway analysis revealed that genes related to oxidative phosphorylation, ribosomes, and neurodegenerative disorder were enriched in Cluster 1; genes related to the mitogen activated protein kinase (MAPK), transforming growth factor (TGF)-β, insulin signaling, and circadian pathways were enriched in Cluster 2; genes related to plasticity-related pathways were enriched in Clusters 3 and 4; and genes related to the proteasome were enriched in Cluster 5. Our results suggest that maladaptive neural plasticity associated with psychostimulant dependence may be an ongoing degenerative process with dynamic changes in the gene network at different stages of withdrawal. Furthermore, it could be helpful to develop new therapeutic approaches according to different periods of abstinence.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mingzhen Li
- Key Lab of Mental Health, Institute of Psychology Chinese Academy of SciencesBeijing, China; Beijing Center for Physical and Chemical AnalysisBeijing, China
| | - Peng Xu
- Drug Intelligence and Forensic Center, Ministry of Public Security Beijing, China
| | - Yanhua Xu
- Key Lab of Mental Health, Institute of Psychology Chinese Academy of Sciences Beijing, China
| | - Huajing Teng
- Beijing Institutes of Life Science, Chinese Academy of SciencesBeijing, China; University of Chinese Academy of SciencesBeijing, China
| | - Weiping Tian
- Key Lab of Mental Health, Institute of Psychology Chinese Academy of Sciences Beijing, China
| | - Quansheng Du
- Key Lab of Mental Health, Institute of Psychology Chinese Academy of SciencesBeijing, China; Department of Life Sciences, National Natural Science Foundation of ChinaBeijing, China
| | - Mei Zhao
- Key Lab of Mental Health, Institute of Psychology Chinese Academy of SciencesBeijing, China; University of Chinese Academy of SciencesBeijing, China
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Wang ZJ, Martin JA, Mueller LE, Caccamise A, Werner CT, Neve RL, Gancarz AM, Li JX, Dietz DM. BRG1 in the Nucleus Accumbens Regulates Cocaine-Seeking Behavior. Biol Psychiatry 2016; 80:652-660. [PMID: 27422367 PMCID: PMC5050080 DOI: 10.1016/j.biopsych.2016.04.020] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/29/2016] [Revised: 04/28/2016] [Accepted: 04/28/2016] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Drug addiction is defined as a chronic disease characterized by compulsive drug seeking and episodes of relapse despite prolonged periods of drug abstinence. Neurobiological adaptations, including transcriptional and epigenetic alterations in the nucleus accumbens, are thought to contribute to this life-long disease state. We previously demonstrated that the transcription factor SMAD3 is increased after 7 days of withdrawal from cocaine self-administration. However, it is still unknown which additional factors participate in the process of chromatin remodeling and facilitate the binding of SMAD3 to promoter regions of target genes. Here, we examined the possible interaction of BRG1-also known as SMARCA4, an adenosine triphosphatase-containing chromatin remodeler-and SMAD3 in response to cocaine exposure. METHODS The expression of BRG1, as well as its binding to SMAD3 and target gene promoter regions, was evaluated in the nucleus accumbens and dorsal striatum of rats using western blotting, co-immunoprecipitation, and chromatin immunoprecipitation following abstinence from cocaine self-administration. Rats were assessed for cocaine-seeking behaviors after either intra-accumbal injections of the BRG1 inhibitor PFI3 or viral-mediated overexpression of BRG1. RESULTS After withdrawal from cocaine self-administration, BRG1 expression and complex formation with SMAD3 are increased in the nucleus accumbens, resulting in increased binding of BRG1 to the promoter regions of Ctnnb1, Mef2d, and Dbn1. Intra-accumbal infusion of PFI3 attenuated, whereas viral overexpression of Brg1 enhanced, cocaine-reinstatement behavior. CONCLUSIONS BRG1 is a key mediator of the SMAD3-dependent regulation of cellular and behavioral plasticity that mediates cocaine seeking after a period of withdrawal.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zi-Jun Wang
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, State University of New York at Buffalo, Buffalo, New York; Research Institute on Addictions, Program in Neuroscience, Department of Psychology, State University of New York at Buffalo, Buffalo, New York
| | - Jennifer A Martin
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, State University of New York at Buffalo, Buffalo, New York; Research Institute on Addictions, Program in Neuroscience, Department of Psychology, State University of New York at Buffalo, Buffalo, New York
| | - Lauren E Mueller
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, State University of New York at Buffalo, Buffalo, New York; Research Institute on Addictions, Program in Neuroscience, Department of Psychology, State University of New York at Buffalo, Buffalo, New York
| | - Aaron Caccamise
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, State University of New York at Buffalo, Buffalo, New York; Research Institute on Addictions, Program in Neuroscience, Department of Psychology, State University of New York at Buffalo, Buffalo, New York
| | - Craig T Werner
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, State University of New York at Buffalo, Buffalo, New York; Research Institute on Addictions, Program in Neuroscience, Department of Psychology, State University of New York at Buffalo, Buffalo, New York
| | - Rachael L Neve
- Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts
| | - Amy M Gancarz
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, State University of New York at Buffalo, Buffalo, New York; Research Institute on Addictions, Program in Neuroscience, Department of Psychology, State University of New York at Buffalo, Buffalo, New York
| | - Jun-Xu Li
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, State University of New York at Buffalo, Buffalo, New York
| | - David M Dietz
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, State University of New York at Buffalo, Buffalo, New York; Research Institute on Addictions, Program in Neuroscience, Department of Psychology, State University of New York at Buffalo, Buffalo, New York; Department of Psychology, California State University Bakersfield, Bakersfield, California.
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García-Pardo MP, Roger-Sanchez C, Rodríguez-Arias M, Miñarro J, Aguilar MA. Pharmacological modulation of protein kinases as a new approach to treat addiction to cocaine and opiates. Eur J Pharmacol 2016; 781:10-24. [DOI: 10.1016/j.ejphar.2016.03.065] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/18/2016] [Revised: 03/28/2016] [Accepted: 03/31/2016] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
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Muñiz JA, Gomez G, González B, Rivero-Echeto MC, Cadet JL, García-Rill E, Urbano FJ, Bisagno V. Combined Effects of Simultaneous Exposure to Caffeine and Cocaine in the Mouse Striatum. Neurotox Res 2016; 29:525-38. [PMID: 26858178 DOI: 10.1007/s12640-016-9601-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/09/2015] [Revised: 01/08/2016] [Accepted: 01/25/2016] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
Abstract
Caffeine is the world's most popular psychoactive drug and is also an active adulterant found in many drugs of abuse, including seized cocaine samples. Despite several studies which examine the effects of caffeine or cocaine administered as single agents, little data are available for these agents when given in combination. The purpose of the present study was to determine if combined intake of both psychostimulants can lead to maladaptive changes in striatal function. Mice were injected with a binge regimen (intermittent treatment for 13 days) of caffeine (3 × 5 mg/kg), cocaine (3 × 10 mg/kg), or combined administration. We found that chronic caffeine potentiated locomotion induced by cocaine and that both caffeine-treated groups showed sensitization. Striatal tissue was obtained 24 h and 7 days after last injection (withdrawal) for immunohistochemistry and mRNA expression. Our results show that combined intake of both psychostimulants can increase GFAP immunoreactivity in the striatum at both times post treatment. Gene expression analysis, targeted at dopamine, adenosine, and glutamate receptor subunit genes, revealed significant transcript down-regulation in the dorsal striatum of AMPA, NMDA, D1 and D2 receptor subunit mRNA expression in the group that received combined treatment, but not after individual administration. At withdrawal, we found increased D1 receptor mRNA expression along with increased A1, AMPA, NMDA, and metabotropic subunit expression. A2A mRNA showed decreased expression after both times in all experimental groups. Our study provides evidence that there are striatal alterations mediated by combined caffeine and cocaine administration, and highlights negative outcomes of chronic intake of both psychostimulants.
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Affiliation(s)
- Javier A Muñiz
- Instituto de Investigaciones Farmacológicas (Universidad de Buenos Aires-Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas), Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Gimena Gomez
- Instituto de Investigaciones Farmacológicas (Universidad de Buenos Aires-Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas), Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Betina González
- Instituto de Investigaciones Farmacológicas (Universidad de Buenos Aires-Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas), Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - María Celeste Rivero-Echeto
- Laboratorio de Fisiología y Biología Molecular, Instituto de Fisiología, Biología Molecular y Neurociencias, Departamento de Fisiología, Biología Molecular y Celular "Dr. Hector Maldonado" (DFBMC), Universidad de Buenos Aires-Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas, Junín 956, piso 5, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, C1113, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Jean Lud Cadet
- Molecular Neuropsychiatry Research Branch, NIH/NIDA Intramural Research Program, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Edgar García-Rill
- Department of Neurobiology and Developmental Sciences, Center for Translational Neuroscience, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, Little Rock, AR, USA
| | - Francisco J Urbano
- Laboratorio de Fisiología y Biología Molecular, Instituto de Fisiología, Biología Molecular y Neurociencias, Departamento de Fisiología, Biología Molecular y Celular "Dr. Hector Maldonado" (DFBMC), Universidad de Buenos Aires-Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas, Junín 956, piso 5, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, C1113, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Veronica Bisagno
- Instituto de Investigaciones Farmacológicas (Universidad de Buenos Aires-Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas), Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires, Argentina.
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Persistent variations in neuronal DNA methylation following cocaine self-administration and protracted abstinence in mice. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2015; 4:1-11. [PMID: 27213137 DOI: 10.1016/j.nepig.2015.10.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/02/2023]
Abstract
Continued vulnerability to relapse during abstinence is characteristic of cocaine addiction and suggests that drug-induced neuroadaptations persist during abstinence. However, the precise cellular and molecular attributes of these adaptations remain equivocal. One possibility is that cocaine self-administration leads to enduring changes in DNA methylation. To address this possibility, we isolated neurons from medial prefrontal cortex and performed high throughput DNA sequencing to examine changes in DNA methylation following cocaine self-administration. Twenty-nine genomic regions became persistently differentially methylated during cocaine self-administration, and an additional 28 regions became selectively differentially methylated during abstinence. Altered DNA methylation was associated with isoform-specific changes in the expression of co-localizing genes. These results provide the first neuron-specific, genome-wide profile of changes in DNA methylation induced by cocaine self-administration and protracted abstinence. Moreover, our findings suggest that altered DNA methylation facilitates long-term behavioral adaptation in a manner that extends beyond the perpetuation of altered transcriptional states.
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26
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Gancarz AM, Wang ZJ, Schroeder GL, Damez-Werno D, Braunscheidel K, Mueller LE, Humby MS, Caccamise A, Martin JA, Dietz KC, Neve RL, Dietz DM. Activin receptor signaling regulates cocaine-primed behavioral and morphological plasticity. Nat Neurosci 2015; 18:959-61. [PMID: 26030849 PMCID: PMC4599345 DOI: 10.1038/nn.4036] [Citation(s) in RCA: 40] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/20/2015] [Accepted: 04/29/2015] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Abstract
Activin receptor signaling, including the transcription factor Smad3, was upregulated in the rat nucleus accumbens (NAc) shell following withdrawal from cocaine. Direct genetic and pharmacological manipulations of this pathway bidirectionally altered cocaine seeking while governing morphological plasticity in NAc neurons. Thus, Activin/Smad3 signaling is induced following withdrawal from cocaine, and such regulation may be a key molecular mechanism underlying behavioral and cellular plasticity in the brain following cocaine self-administration.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amy M. Gancarz
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology; Research Institute on Addictions; Program in Neuroscience, State University of New York at Buffalo, Buffalo, NY
| | - Zi-Jun Wang
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology; Research Institute on Addictions; Program in Neuroscience, State University of New York at Buffalo, Buffalo, NY
| | - Gabrielle L. Schroeder
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology; Research Institute on Addictions; Program in Neuroscience, State University of New York at Buffalo, Buffalo, NY
| | - Diane Damez-Werno
- Department of Neuroscience at Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY
| | - Kevin Braunscheidel
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology; Research Institute on Addictions; Program in Neuroscience, State University of New York at Buffalo, Buffalo, NY
| | - Lauren E. Mueller
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology; Research Institute on Addictions; Program in Neuroscience, State University of New York at Buffalo, Buffalo, NY
| | - Monica S. Humby
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology; Research Institute on Addictions; Program in Neuroscience, State University of New York at Buffalo, Buffalo, NY
| | - Aaron Caccamise
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology; Research Institute on Addictions; Program in Neuroscience, State University of New York at Buffalo, Buffalo, NY
| | - Jennifer A. Martin
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology; Research Institute on Addictions; Program in Neuroscience, State University of New York at Buffalo, Buffalo, NY
| | - Karen C. Dietz
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology; Research Institute on Addictions; Program in Neuroscience, State University of New York at Buffalo, Buffalo, NY
| | | | - David M. Dietz
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology; Research Institute on Addictions; Program in Neuroscience, State University of New York at Buffalo, Buffalo, NY
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Marron Fernandez de Velasco E, Hearing M, Xia Z, Victoria NC, Luján R, Wickman K. Sex differences in GABA(B)R-GIRK signaling in layer 5/6 pyramidal neurons of the mouse prelimbic cortex. Neuropharmacology 2015; 95:353-60. [PMID: 25843643 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropharm.2015.03.029] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/12/2014] [Revised: 03/10/2015] [Accepted: 03/24/2015] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
Abstract
The medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) has been implicated in multiple disorders characterized by clear sex differences, including schizophrenia, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, depression, and drug addiction. These sex differences likely represent underlying differences in connectivity and/or the balance of neuronal excitability within the mPFC. Recently, we demonstrated that signaling via the metabotropic γ-aminobutyric acid receptor (GABABR) and G protein-gated inwardly-rectifying K(+) (GIRK/Kir3) channels modulates the excitability of the key output neurons of the mPFC, the layer 5/6 pyramidal neurons. Here, we report a sex difference in the GABABR-GIRK signaling pathway in these neurons. Specifically, GABABR-dependent GIRK currents recorded in the prelimbic region of the mPFC were larger in adolescent male mice than in female counterparts. Interestingly, this sex difference was not observed in layer 5/6 pyramidal neurons of the adjacent infralimbic cortex, nor was it seen in young adult mice. The sex difference in GABABR-GIRK signaling is not attributable to different expression levels of signaling pathway components, but rather to a phosphorylation-dependent trafficking mechanism. Thus, sex differences related to some diseases associated with altered mPFC function may be explained in part by sex differences in GIRK-dependent signaling in mPFC pyramidal neurons.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Matthew Hearing
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Minnesota, 6-145 Jackson Hall, 321 Church Street SE, Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA
| | - Zhilian Xia
- Department of Pharmacology, University of Minnesota, 6-120 Jackson Hall, 321 Church Street SE, Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA
| | - Nicole C Victoria
- Department of Pharmacology, University of Minnesota, 6-120 Jackson Hall, 321 Church Street SE, Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA
| | - Rafael Luján
- IDINE, Departmento de Ciencias Médicas, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad de Castilla La Mancha, C/Almansa 14, 02006, Albacete, Spain
| | - Kevin Wickman
- Department of Pharmacology, University of Minnesota, 6-120 Jackson Hall, 321 Church Street SE, Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA.
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dela Peña I, de la Peña JB, Kim BN, Han DH, Noh M, Cheong JH. Gene expression profiling in the striatum of amphetamine-treated spontaneously hypertensive rats which showed amphetamine conditioned place preference and self-administration. Arch Pharm Res 2014; 38:865-75. [PMID: 25163681 DOI: 10.1007/s12272-014-0470-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/19/2014] [Accepted: 08/19/2014] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), the most commonly diagnosed neurobehavioral disorder of childhood, is usually treated with psychostimulants (e.g., amphetamine). Little is known about the neuronal and behavioral consequences of chronic amphetamine use or abuse in individuals with ADHD. Of all ADHD animal models, the spontaneously hypertensive rat (SHR) is the most validated and widely used. Here, we analyzed striatal transcriptomes in amphetamine-pretreated SHRs (5 mg/kg, i.p. for 7 days [twice daily]), which showed a conditioned place preference to and self-administration of amphetamine. Microarray analyses revealed increased mRNA expression of 55 genes (>1.65-fold increase), while 17 genes were downregulated (<0.6-fold) in the striatum of SHRs. The main functional categories overrepresented among the differentially expressed genes in the striatum include those involved in transcription (e.g., Cebpb, Per2), genes associated with angiogenesis (e.g., Kdr, Klf5), cell adhesion (e.g., Col11a1, Ctgf), apoptosis (e.g., Nfkbia, Perp) and neuronal development (e.g., Egr2, Nr4a3). In conclusion, we dissected the striatal transcriptional responses to the reinforcing effects of repeated amphetamine treatment in the SHR model of ADHD. Future studies should determine the influence of these altered transcripts on amphetamine reinforcement in amphetamine-treated SHRs, and the clinical relevance of the present findings with regard to amphetamine use/abuse in ADHD individuals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ike dela Peña
- Uimyung Research Institute for Neuroscience, Sahmyook University, 26-21 Kongreung-2-dong, Hwarangro-815, Nowon-gu, Seoul, 139-742, Korea
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Beveridge TJR, Smith HR, Nader SH, Nader MA, Porrino LJ. Functional consequences of cocaine re-exposure after discontinuation of cocaine availability. Neuropharmacology 2014; 85:528-37. [PMID: 24953829 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropharm.2014.06.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/22/2014] [Revised: 05/29/2014] [Accepted: 06/04/2014] [Indexed: 01/22/2023]
Abstract
Cocaine users exhibit a wide range of behavioral impairments accompanied by brain structural, neurochemical and functional abnormalities. Metabolic mapping studies in cocaine users and animal models have shown extensive functional alterations throughout the striatum, limbic system, and cortex. Few studies, however, have evaluated the persistence of these effects following cessation of cocaine availability. The purpose of this study, therefore, was to assess the functional effects of re-exposure to cocaine in nonhuman primates after the discontinuation of cocaine self-administration for 30 or 90 days, using the quantitative autoradiographic 2-[14C]deoxyglucose (2DG) method. Rhesus monkeys self-administered cocaine (fixed interval 3-min schedule, 30 infusions per session, 0.3 mg/kg/infusion) for 100 sessions followed by 30 (n=4) or 90 days (n=3) during which experimental sessions were not conducted. Food-reinforced control animals (n=5) underwent identical schedules of reinforcement. Animals were then re-exposed to cocaine or food for one final session and the 2DG method applied immediately after session completion. Compared to controls, re-exposure to cocaine after 30 or 90 day drug-free periods resulted in lower rates of glucose utilization in ventral and dorsal striatum, prefrontal and temporal cortex, limbic system, thalamus, and midbrain. These data demonstrate that vulnerability to the effects of cocaine persists for as long as 90 days after cessation of drug use. While there was some evidence for recovery (fewer brain areas were affected by cocaine re-exposure at 90 days as compared to 30 days), this was not uniform across regions, thus suggesting that recovery occurs at different rates in different brain systems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thomas J R Beveridge
- Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, Wake Forest School of Medicine, Medical Center Boulevard, Winston Salem, NC 27157, USA.
| | - Hilary R Smith
- Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, Wake Forest School of Medicine, Medical Center Boulevard, Winston Salem, NC 27157, USA.
| | - Susan H Nader
- Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, Wake Forest School of Medicine, Medical Center Boulevard, Winston Salem, NC 27157, USA.
| | - Michael A Nader
- Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, Wake Forest School of Medicine, Medical Center Boulevard, Winston Salem, NC 27157, USA.
| | - Linda J Porrino
- Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, Wake Forest School of Medicine, Medical Center Boulevard, Winston Salem, NC 27157, USA.
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dela Peña I, Kim HJ, Sohn A, Kim BN, Han DH, Ryu JH, Shin CY, Noh M, Cheong JH. Prefrontal cortical and striatal transcriptional responses to the reinforcing effect of repeated methylphenidate treatment in the spontaneously hypertensive rat, animal model of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Behav Brain Funct 2014; 10:17. [PMID: 24884696 PMCID: PMC4077266 DOI: 10.1186/1744-9081-10-17] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/22/2014] [Accepted: 04/25/2014] [Indexed: 01/12/2023] Open
Abstract
Background Methylphenidate is the most commonly used stimulant drug for the treatment of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Research has found that methylphenidate is a “reinforcer” and that individuals with ADHD also abuse this medication. Nevertheless, the molecular consequences of long-term recreational methylphenidate use or abuse in individuals with ADHD are not yet fully known. Methods Spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR), the most validated and widely used ADHD animal model, were pretreated with methylphenidate (5 mg/kg, i.p.) during their adolescence (post-natal day [PND] 42–48) and tested for subsequent methylphenidate-induced conditioned place preference (CPP) and self-administration. Thereafter, the differentially expressed genes in the prefrontal cortex (PFC) and striatum of representative methylphenidate-treated SHRs, which showed CPP to and self-administration of methylphenidate, were analyzed. Results Genome-wide transcriptome profiling analyses revealed 30 differentially expressed genes in the PFC, which include transcripts involved in apoptosis (e.g. S100a9, Angptl4, Nfkbia), transcription (Cebpb, Per3), and neuronal plasticity (Homer1, Jam2, Asap1). In contrast, 306 genes were differentially expressed in the striatum and among them, 252 were downregulated. The main functional categories overrepresented among the downregulated genes include those involved in cell adhesion (e.g. Pcdh10, Ctbbd1, Itgb6), positive regulation of apoptosis (Perp, Taf1, Api5), (Notch3, Nsbp1, Sik1), mitochondrion organization (Prps18c, Letm1, Uqcrc2), and ubiquitin-mediated proteolysis (Nedd4, Usp27x, Ube2d2). Conclusion Together, these changes indicate methylphenidate-induced neurotoxicity, altered synaptic and neuronal plasticity, energy metabolism and ubiquitin-dependent protein degradation in the brains of methylphenidate-treated SHRs, which showed methylphenidate CPP and self-administration. In addition, these findings may also reflect cognitive impairment associated with chronic methylphenidate use as demonstrated in preclinical studies. Future studies are warranted to determine the clinical significance of the present findings with regard to long-term recreational methylphenidate use or abuse in individuals with ADHD.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | - Minsoo Noh
- Uimyung Research Institute for Neuroscience, Sahmyook University, 26-21 Kongreung-2-dong, Hwarangro- 815 Nowon-gu, Seoul 139-742, Korea.
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Dela Peña I, Jeon SJ, Lee E, Ryu JH, Shin CY, Noh M, Cheong JH. Neuronal development genes are key elements mediating the reinforcing effects of methamphetamine, amphetamine, and methylphenidate. Psychopharmacology (Berl) 2013; 230:399-413. [PMID: 23783774 DOI: 10.1007/s00213-013-3168-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/03/2013] [Accepted: 05/28/2013] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Abstract
RATIONALE The molecular mechanisms underlying susceptibility to psychostimulant addiction remain unclear. Searching for commonalities in the effects of addictive drugs on brain gene expression is a prolific approach to determine transcriptional signatures influencing drug abuse. OBJECTIVE We explored the common transcriptional responses to the reinforcing effects of psychostimulants methamphetamine, amphetamine, and methylphenidate. We also aimed to identify transcriptional changes that may subserve abuse of these drugs. METHODS Genome-wide transcriptome profiling analyses were performed to identify common prefrontal cortical (PFC) and striatal gene expression profiles in drug-naïve (cohort 1) and stimulant-pretreated (cohort 2) rats, which showed a conditioned place preference to and self-administration of methamphetamine, amphetamine, and methylphenidate. RESULTS In behavioral studies, stimulant-pretreated rats showed behavioral sensitization characterized by enhanced behavioral response to the rewarding or reinforcing effects of psychostimulants. Inflammation-associated genes (e.g., Alas1, S100a8 and S100a9) were identified as the primary differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in both the PFC and the striatum of cohort 1 rats, while neuronal plasticity (Sgk1)- and brain development (e.g., Bhlhe22, Neurod1, Nr4a2, and Msx1)-associated genes comprised the major upregulated DEGs in the striatum of cohort 2 rats. Furthermore, a meta-analysis of the common striatal DEGs in this study along with morphine-regulated striatal transcriptomes in mice (National Center for Biotechnology Information-Gene Expression Omnibus Database Accession Code GSE7762) suggested similar expression profiles of genes involved in neuronal development (e.g., Bhlhe22, Nr4a2). CONCLUSION This study provides evidence that brain development-associated genes mediate the reinforcing effects of methamphetamine, amphetamine, and methylphenidate and that these transcripts may underlie susceptibility to psychostimulant addiction.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ike Dela Peña
- Uimyung Research Institute for Neuroscience, Sahmyook University, 26-21 Kongreung-2-dong, Hwarangro-815, Nowon-gu, Seoul, 139-742, South Korea
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Chambers RA, McClintick JN, Sentir AM, Berg SA, Runyan M, Choi KH, Edenberg HJ. Cortical-striatal gene expression in neonatal hippocampal lesion (NVHL)-amplified cocaine sensitization. GENES BRAIN AND BEHAVIOR 2013; 12:564-75. [PMID: 23682998 DOI: 10.1111/gbb.12051] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/07/2013] [Revised: 05/01/2013] [Accepted: 05/14/2013] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Cortical-striatal circuit dysfunction in mental illness may enhance addiction vulnerability. Neonatal ventral hippocampal lesions (NVHL) model this dual diagnosis causality by producing a schizophrenia syndrome with enhanced responsiveness to addictive drugs. Rat genome-wide microarrays containing >24 000 probesets were used to examine separate and co-occurring effects of NVHLs and cocaine sensitization (15 mg/kg/day × 5 days) on gene expression within medial prefrontal cortex (MPFC), nucleus accumbens (NAC), and caudate-putamen (CAPU). Two weeks after NVHLs robustly amplified cocaine behavioral sensitization, brains were harvested for genes of interest defined as those altered at P < 0.001 by NVHL or cocaine effects or interactions. Among 135 genes so impacted, NVHLs altered twofold more than cocaine, with half of all changes in the NAC. Although no genes were changed in the same direction by both NVHL and cocaine history, the anatomy and directionality of significant changes suggested synergy on the neural circuit level generative of compounded behavioral phenotypes: NVHL predominantly downregulated expression in MPFC and NAC while NVHL and cocaine history mostly upregulated CAPU expression. From 75 named genes altered by NVHL or cocaine, 27 had expression levels that correlated significantly with degree of behavioral sensitization, including 11 downregulated by NVHL in MPFC/NAC, and 10 upregulated by NVHL or cocaine in CAPU. These findings suggest that structural and functional impoverishment of prefrontal-cortical-accumbens circuits in mental illness is associated with abnormal striatal plasticity compounding with that in addictive disease. Polygenetic interactions impacting neuronal signaling and morphology within these networks likely contribute to addiction vulnerability in mental illness.
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Affiliation(s)
- R A Chambers
- Lab for Translational Neuroscience of Dual Diagnosis & Development, Department of Psychiatry, Institute for Psychiatric Research, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, IN 46202, USA.
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Abstract
Cocaine-induced neuroplasticity mediated by histone acetylating and deacetylating enzymes may contribute to addiction-like behaviors. For example, overexpression of histone deacetylases (HDACs) 4 or 5 in the nucleus accumbens suppresses cocaine-induced conditioned place preference (CPP) acquisition in mice. HDAC4 and HDAC5 are known to interact with HDAC3, but the role of HDAC3 in cocaine-induced behaviors has never been examined. In this study, we address the hypothesis that HDAC3 is a negative regulator of cocaine-context-associated memory formation in mice. We examined the role of HDAC3 during the conditioning phase of CPP, when the mouse has the opportunity to form an associative memory between the cocaine-paired context and the subjective effects of cocaine. To address this hypothesis, Hdac3(flox/flox) and Hdac3(+/+) mice (generated from a C57BL/6 background) were infused into the nucleus accumbens with adeno-associated virus expressing Cre recombinase to create focal, homozygous Hdac3 deletions. Hdac3(flox/flox) mice exhibit significantly enhanced CPP acquisition, which is correlated with increased gene expression during the consolidation phase of acquisition. Increased gene expression of c-Fos and Nr4a2 is correlated with decreased HDAC3 occupancy and increased histone H4 lysine 8 acetylation at their promoters. The results from this study demonstrate that HDAC3 negatively regulates cocaine-induced CPP acquisition.
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Proteomic profile of differentially expressed proteins in the medial prefrontal cortex after repeated cocaine exposure. Neuroscience 2013; 236:262-70. [DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroscience.2013.01.039] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/17/2012] [Accepted: 01/18/2013] [Indexed: 01/12/2023]
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Bu Q, Hu Z, Chen F, Zhu R, Deng Y, Shao X, Li Y, Zhao J, Li H, Zhang B, Lv L, Yan G, Zhao Y, Cen X. Transcriptome analysis of long non-coding RNAs of the nucleus accumbens in cocaine-conditioned mice. J Neurochem 2012; 123:790-9. [PMID: 22957495 DOI: 10.1111/jnc.12006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 40] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/02/2012] [Revised: 07/16/2012] [Accepted: 08/30/2012] [Indexed: 02/05/2023]
Abstract
Cocaine dependence involves in the brain's reward circuit as well as nucleus accumbens (NAc), a key region of the mesolimbic dopamine pathway. Many studies have documented altered expression of genes and identified transcription factor networks and epigenetic processes that are fundamental to cocaine addiction. However, all these investigations have focused on mRNA of encoding genes, which may not always reflect the involvement of long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs), which has been implied in a broad range of biological processes and complex diseases including brain development and neuropathological process. To explore the potential involvement of lncRNAs in drug addiction, which is viewed as a form of aberrant neuroplasticity, we used a custom-designed microarray to examine the expression profiles of mRNAs and lncRNAs in brain NAc of cocaine-conditioned mice and identified 764 mRNAs, and 603 lncRNAs were differentially expressed. Candidate lncRNAs were identified for further genomic context characterization as sense-overlap, antisense-overlap, intergenic, bidirection, and ultra-conserved region encoding lncRNAs. We found that 410 candidate lncRNAs which have been reported to act in cis or trans to their targeted loci, providing 48 pair mRNA-lncRNAs. These results suggest that the modification of mRNAs expression by cocaine may be associated with the actions of lncRNAs. Taken together, our results show that cocaine can cause the genome-wide alterations of lncRNAs expressed in NAc, and some of these modified RNA transcripts may to play a role in cocaine-induced neural plasticity and addiction.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qian Bu
- National Chengdu Center for Safety Evaluation of Drugs, State Key Lab of Biotherapy, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China
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Duncan JR. Current perspectives on the neurobiology of drug addiction: a focus on genetics and factors regulating gene expression. ISRN NEUROLOGY 2012; 2012:972607. [PMID: 23097719 PMCID: PMC3477671 DOI: 10.5402/2012/972607] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/16/2012] [Accepted: 09/06/2012] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
Drug addiction is a chronic, relapsing disorder defined by cyclic patterns of compulsive drug seeking and taking interspersed with episodes of abstinence. While genetic variability may increase the risk of addictive behaviours in an individual, exposure to a drug results in neuroadaptations in interconnected brain circuits which, in susceptible individuals, are believed to underlie the transition to, and maintenance of, an addicted state. These adaptations can occur at the cellular, molecular, or (epi)genetic level and are associated with synaptic plasticity and altered gene expression, the latter being mediated via both factors affecting translation (epigenetics) and transcription (non coding microRNAs) of the DNA or RNA itself. New advances using techniques such as optogenetics have the potential to increase our understanding of the microcircuitry mediating addictive behaviours. However, the processes leading to addiction are complex and multifactorial and thus we face a major contemporary challenge to elucidate the factors implicated in the development and maintenance of an addicted state.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jhodie R Duncan
- The Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC 3010, Australia ; Department of Anatomy and Neuroscience, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC 3010, Australia
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Kapfhamer D, Taylor S, Zou ME, Lim JP, Kharazia V, Heberlein U. Taok2 controls behavioral response to ethanol in mice. GENES BRAIN AND BEHAVIOR 2012; 12:87-97. [PMID: 22883308 DOI: 10.1111/j.1601-183x.2012.00834.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/15/2012] [Revised: 05/30/2012] [Accepted: 08/02/2012] [Indexed: 01/27/2023]
Abstract
Despite recent advances in the understanding of ethanol's biological action, many of the molecular targets of ethanol and mechanisms behind ethanol's effect on behavior remain poorly understood. In an effort to identify novel genes, the products of which regulate behavioral responses to ethanol, we recently identified a mutation in the dtao gene that confers resistance to the locomotor stimulating effect of ethanol in Drosophila. dtao encodes a member of the Ste20 family of serine/threonine kinases implicated in MAP kinase signaling pathways. In this study, we report that conditional ablation of the mouse dtao homolog, Taok2, constitutively and specifically in the nervous system, results in strain-specific and overlapping alterations in ethanol-dependent behaviors. These data suggest a functional conservation of dtao and Taok2 in mediating ethanol's biological action and identify Taok2 as a putative candidate gene for ethanol use disorders in humans.
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Affiliation(s)
- D Kapfhamer
- The Ernest Gallo Clinic and Research Center, University of California at San Francisco, Emeryville, CA 94608, USA.
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Individual differences in the improvement of cocaine-induced place preference response by the 5-HT2C receptor antagonist SB242084 in rats. Psychopharmacology (Berl) 2012; 220:731-40. [PMID: 21989806 PMCID: PMC3314106 DOI: 10.1007/s00213-011-2524-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/16/2010] [Accepted: 09/26/2011] [Indexed: 10/17/2022]
Abstract
RATIONALE AND OBJECTIVES The 5-HT(2A) and 5-HT(2C) receptors have been shown to be differentially involved in modulating cocaine-induced behaviors. In this study we investigated the effects of the 5-HT(2A) antagonist MDL100907 (0.3 mg/kg, i.p.) and the 5-HT(2C) antagonist SB242084 (0.5 mg/kg, i.p.) on development, expression, and recall of cocaine-induced conditioned place preference (CPP) in high- (HR) and low-responder (LR) rats to novelty. RESULTS First, we examined the effects of MDL100907 and SB242084 on development of cocaine-induced CPP. Our results indicated that LR, but not HR, animals conditioned with SB242084 + cocaine showed a significantly higher CPP response than controls. This effect was long lasting, as it was still present 30 days after the last conditioning session. Second, we investigated the acute effects of MDL100907 and SB242084 on CPP expression 24 h after cocaine conditioning. Again, our data showed that SB242084 significantly enhanced the expression of cocaine CPP in LR, but not HR animals. Finally, we studied the acute effects of MDL100907 and SB242084 on CPP recall 30 days after cocaine conditioning. Neither MDL100907 nor SB242084 significantly affected the CPP response regardless of the rats' behavioral phenotype. CONCLUSIONS This is the first study investigating the contribution of 5-HT(2A) and 5-HT(2C) receptors on development, expression, and recall of cocaine-induced CPP in the HR-LR model of individual vulnerability to drug abuse. Our results show that SB242084 differentially modulates development and expression of CPP in HR vs. LR rats and suggest that 5-HT(2C) receptors play a key role in individual differences on cocaine reward-related learning/memory processes.
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Drug withdrawal-induced depression: Serotonergic and plasticity changes in animal models. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2012; 36:696-726. [DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2011.10.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 36] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/28/2011] [Revised: 10/06/2011] [Accepted: 10/15/2011] [Indexed: 12/17/2022]
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CREB-mediated alterations in the amygdala transcriptome: coordinated regulation of immune response genes following cocaine. Int J Neuropsychopharmacol 2011; 14:1111-26. [PMID: 21138621 PMCID: PMC3970411 DOI: 10.1017/s1461145710001392] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/05/2022] Open
Abstract
The neuronal circuitry underlying stress- and drug-induced reinstatement of cocaine-seeking has been relatively well characterized; however, less is known regarding the long-term molecular changes following cocaine administration that may promote future reinstatement. The transcription factor cAMP response element-binding protein (CREB) is necessary for stress- but not cocaine-induced reinstatement of conditioned reward, suggesting that different molecular mechanisms may underlie these two types of reinstatement. To explore the relationship between this transcription factor and reinstatement, we utilized the place-conditioning paradigm to examine alterations in gene expression in the amygdala, a neural substrate critically involved in stress-induced reinstatement, following the development of cocaine reward and subsequent extinction. Our findings demonstrate that the amygdala transcriptome was altered by CREB deficiency more than by previous cocaine experience, with an over-representation of genes involved in the immune response. However, a subset of genes involved in stress and immune response demonstrated a drug×genotype interaction, indicating that cocaine produces different long-term alterations in gene expression depending on the presence or absence of CREB. This profile of gene expression in the context of addiction enhances our understanding of the long-term molecular changes that occur throughout the addiction cycle and identifies novel genes and pathways that might lead to the creation of better therapeutic agents.
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Pickens CL, Airavaara M, Theberge F, Fanous S, Hope BT, Shaham Y. Neurobiology of the incubation of drug craving. Trends Neurosci 2011; 34:411-20. [PMID: 21764143 PMCID: PMC3152666 DOI: 10.1016/j.tins.2011.06.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 433] [Impact Index Per Article: 33.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/11/2011] [Revised: 06/02/2011] [Accepted: 06/02/2011] [Indexed: 12/20/2022]
Abstract
It was suggested in 1986 that cue-induced drug craving in cocaine addicts progressively increases over the first several weeks of abstinence and remains high for extended periods. During the past decade, investigators have identified an analogous incubation phenomenon in rodents, in which time-dependent increases in cue-induced drug seeking are observed after withdrawal from intravenous cocaine self-administration. Such an incubation of drug craving is not specific to cocaine, as similar findings have been observed after self-administration of heroin, nicotine, methamphetamine and alcohol in rats. In this review, we discuss recent results that have identified important brain regions involved in the incubation of drug craving, as well as evidence for the underlying cellular mechanisms. Understanding the neurobiology of the incubation of drug craving in rodents is likely to have significant implications for furthering understanding of brain mechanisms and circuits that underlie craving and relapse in human addicts.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Florence Theberge
- Intramural Research Program, National Institute on Drug Addiction (NIDA), National Institute of Health (NIH), 251 Bayview Blvd, Baltimore, Maryland, 21224, USA
| | - Sanya Fanous
- Intramural Research Program, National Institute on Drug Addiction (NIDA), National Institute of Health (NIH), 251 Bayview Blvd, Baltimore, Maryland, 21224, USA
| | - Bruce T. Hope
- Intramural Research Program, National Institute on Drug Addiction (NIDA), National Institute of Health (NIH), 251 Bayview Blvd, Baltimore, Maryland, 21224, USA
| | - Yavin Shaham
- Intramural Research Program, National Institute on Drug Addiction (NIDA), National Institute of Health (NIH), 251 Bayview Blvd, Baltimore, Maryland, 21224, USA
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Rutherford HJV, Williams SK, Moy S, Mayes LC, Johns JM. Disruption of maternal parenting circuitry by addictive process: rewiring of reward and stress systems. Front Psychiatry 2011; 2:37. [PMID: 21779252 PMCID: PMC3133875 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyt.2011.00037] [Citation(s) in RCA: 95] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/22/2011] [Accepted: 06/09/2011] [Indexed: 01/18/2023] Open
Abstract
Addiction represents a complex interaction between the reward and stress neural circuits, with increasing drug use reflecting a shift from positive reinforcement to negative reinforcement mechanisms in sustaining drug dependence. Preclinical studies have indicated the involvement of regions within the extended amygdala as subserving this transition, especially under stressful conditions. In the addictive situation, the reward system serves to maintain habitual behaviors that are associated with the relief of negative affect, at the cost of attenuating the salience of other rewards. Therefore, addiction reflects the dysregulation between core reward systems, including the prefrontal cortex (PFC), ventral tegmental area (VTA), and nucleus accumbens (NAc), as well as the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis and extended amygdala of the stress system. Here, we consider the consequences of changes in neural function during or following addiction on parenting, an inherently rewarding process that may be disrupted by addiction. Specifically, we outline the preclinical and human studies that support the dysregulation of reward and stress systems by addiction and the contribution of these systems to parenting. Increasing evidence suggests an important role for the hypothalamus, PFC, VTA, and NAc in parenting, with these same regions being those dysregulated in addiction. Moreover, in addicted adults, we propose that parenting cues trigger stress reactivity rather than reward salience, and this may heighten negative affect states, eliciting both addictive behaviors and the potential for child neglect and abuse.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Sarah K. Williams
- Department of Psychiatry, University of North Carolina-Chapel HillChapel Hill, NC, USA
| | - Sheryl Moy
- Department of Psychiatry, University of North Carolina-Chapel HillChapel Hill, NC, USA
- Carolina Institute for Developmental Disabilities, University of North Carolina-Chapel HillChapel Hill, NC, USA
| | - Linda C. Mayes
- Yale Child Study Center, Yale UniversityNew Haven, CT, USA
| | - Josephine M. Johns
- Department of Psychiatry, University of North Carolina-Chapel HillChapel Hill, NC, USA
- Carolina Institute for Developmental Disabilities, University of North Carolina-Chapel HillChapel Hill, NC, USA
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Landgren S, Engel JA, Hyytiä P, Zetterberg H, Blennow K, Jerlhag E. Expression of the gene encoding the ghrelin receptor in rats selected for differential alcohol preference. Behav Brain Res 2011; 221:182-8. [PMID: 21392542 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbr.2011.03.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 50] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/04/2011] [Revised: 02/24/2011] [Accepted: 03/01/2011] [Indexed: 10/18/2022]
Abstract
The mechanisms involved in alcohol use disorder, a chronic relapsing brain disorder, are complex and involve various signalling systems in the brain. Recently, the orexigenic peptide ghrelin was shown to be required for alcohol-induced reward, an effect mediated via ghrelin receptors, GHS-R1A, at the level of the cholinergic-dopaminergic reward link. Moreover, ghrelin increases and GHR-R1A antagonists reduce moderate alcohol consumption in mice, and a single nucleotide polymorphism in the GHS-R1A gene has been associated with high alcohol consumption in humans. Therefore, GHS-R1A gene expression and alcohol intake were investigated in high, AA (Alko, Alcohol), versus low, ANA (Alko, Non-Alcohol), alcohol consuming rats as well as in Wistar rats. In the AA and ANA rats plasma ghrelin levels were also measured. GHS-R1A gene expression was increased in AA compared to ANA rats in nucleus accumbens, ventral tegmental area, amygdala, prefrontal cortex and hippocampus. A similar trend was observed in the ventral tegmental area of Wistar rats consuming high amounts of alcohol. Furthermore, the AA rats had significantly smaller reduction of plasma ghrelin levels over time, after several weeks of alcohol exposure, than had the ANA rats. The present study provides further evidence for that the ghrelin signalling system, in particular at the level of the mesocortocolimbic dopamine system, is involved in alcohol consumption, and thus possibly contributes to alcohol use disorder. Therefore the GHS-R1A may constitute a novel candidate for development of new treatment strategies for alcohol dependence.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sara Landgren
- Department of Pharmacology, Institute of Neuroscience and Physiology, The Sahlgrenska Academy at the University of Gothenburg, SE-405 30 Gothenburg, Sweden.
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LaPlant Q, Nestler EJ. CRACKing the histone code: cocaine's effects on chromatin structure and function. Horm Behav 2011; 59:321-30. [PMID: 20594965 PMCID: PMC2948759 DOI: 10.1016/j.yhbeh.2010.05.015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 40] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/10/2010] [Revised: 05/14/2010] [Accepted: 05/22/2010] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
Abstract
Epigenetics, the nongenetic component of how chromatin structure influences gene expression, is amazingly complex, and linking how environmental stimuli can influence epigenetic 'gene programs' in specific nerve cells to ultimately control behavior is a seemingly insurmountable puzzle. Cocaine is a highly potent stimulus capable of influencing behavior for the lifetime of an organism. Not surprisingly, psychostimulant-induced epigenetic regulation of gene expression has thus been identified as key to understanding the pathology of addiction. In addition to identifying this essential role of epigenetics in addiction, several important concepts have emerged such as the importance of global, temporal, and spatial control of mRNA expression in considering any given histone modification's influence on a given gene. Adding to this complexity, one has to account for the cumulative influence of other epigenetic modifications on a gene's transcription in addition to the interplay between transcription factors and chromatin structure. This review highlights how bioinformatic, molecular, and behavioral studies on addiction provide new insight into these concepts and outlines two distinct psychostimulant-induced patterns of chromatin regulation which are thought to underlie unique programs of gene expression that contribute importantly to the addicted state.
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Affiliation(s)
- Quincey LaPlant
- Fishberg Department of Neuroscience, Mount Sinai School of Medicine, One Gustave L. Levy Place, Box 1065, New York, NY 10029-6574, USA
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