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Dinu LM, Georgescu AL, Singh SN, Byrom NC, Overton PG, Singer BF, Dommett EJ. Sign-tracking and goal-tracking in humans: Utilising eye-tracking in clinical and non-clinical populations. Behav Brain Res 2024; 461:114846. [PMID: 38184207 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbr.2024.114846] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/22/2023] [Revised: 12/18/2023] [Accepted: 01/02/2024] [Indexed: 01/08/2024]
Abstract
BACKGROUND In Pavlovian conditioning, learned behaviour varies according to the perceived value of environmental cues. For goal-trackers (GT), the cue merely predicts a reward, whilst for sign-trackers (ST), the cue holds incentive value. The sign-tracking/goal-tracking model is well-validated in animals, but translational work is lacking. Despite the model's relevance to several conditions, including attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), we are unaware of any studies that have examined the model in clinical populations. METHODS The current study used an eye-tracking Pavlovian conditioning paradigm to identify ST and GT in non-clinical (N = 54) and ADHD (N = 57) participants. Eye movements were recorded whilst performing the task. Dwell time was measured for two areas of interest: sign (i.e., cue) and goal (i.e., reward), and an eye-gaze index (EGI) was computed based on the dwell time sign-to-goal ratio. Higher EGI values indicate sign-tracking behaviour. ST and GT were determined using median and tertiary split approaches in both samples. RESULTS Despite greater propensity for sign-tracking in those with ADHD, there was no significant difference between groups. The oculomotor conditioned response was reward-specific (CS+) and present, at least partly, from the start of the task indicating dispositional and learned components. There were no differences in externalising behaviours between ST and GT for either sample. CONCLUSIONS Sign-tracking is associated with CS+ trials only. There may be both dispositional and learned components to sign-tracking, potentially more common in those with ADHD. This holds translational potential for understanding individual differences in reward-learning.
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Affiliation(s)
- Larisa-Maria Dinu
- Department of Psychology, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience, King's College London, London SE5 8AF, UK.
| | - Alexandra-Livia Georgescu
- Department of Psychology, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience, King's College London, London SE5 8AF, UK
| | - Samriddhi N Singh
- Department of Psychology, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience, King's College London, London SE5 8AF, UK
| | - Nicola C Byrom
- Department of Psychology, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience, King's College London, London SE5 8AF, UK
| | - Paul G Overton
- Department of Psychology, The University of Sheffield, Cathedral Court, Sheffield S1 2LT, UK
| | - Bryan F Singer
- School of Psychology, Sussex Addiction Research & Intervention Centre, Sussex Neuroscience, University of Sussex, Brighton BN1 9RH, UK
| | - Eleanor J Dommett
- Department of Psychology, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience, King's College London, London SE5 8AF, UK
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Zeng S, McLaughlin EFB, Ramesh A, Morrison SE. Propensity for risky choices despite lower cue reactivity in adolescent rats. Front Behav Neurosci 2023; 17:1297293. [PMID: 38053922 PMCID: PMC10694209 DOI: 10.3389/fnbeh.2023.1297293] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/19/2023] [Accepted: 11/03/2023] [Indexed: 12/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Adolescence is a time of heightened risk-taking across species. Salient audiovisual cues associated with rewards are a common feature of gambling environments and have been connected to increased risky decision-making. We have previously shown that, in adult male rats, sign tracking - a behavioral measure of cue reactivity - predicts an individual's propensity for suboptimal risky choices in a rodent gambling task (rGT) with win-paired cues. However, adolescents perform less sign tracking than adult animals, suggesting that they are less cue-reactive than adults in some circumstances. Therefore, we investigated the performance of adolescent male rats on the rGT with win cues and examined its relationship with their sign-tracking behavior. We found that adolescents make more risky choices and fewer optimal choices on the rGT compared with adults, evidence of the validity of the rGT as a model of adolescent gambling behavior. We also confirmed that adolescents perform less sign tracking than adults, and we found that, unlike in adults, adolescents' sign tracking was unrelated to their risk-taking in the rGT. This implies that adolescent risk-taking is less likely than that of adults to be driven by reward-related cues. Finally, we found that adults trained on the rGT as adolescents retained an adolescent-like propensity toward risky choices, suggesting that early exposure to a gambling environment may have a long-lasting impact on risk-taking behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | - Sara E. Morrison
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, United States
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3
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He M, Zhan X, Liu C, Li L, Zhao X, Ren L, Li K, Luo X. The relationship between self-control and mental health problems among Chinese university students. Front Public Health 2023; 11:1224427. [PMID: 38026364 PMCID: PMC10644003 DOI: 10.3389/fpubh.2023.1224427] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/17/2023] [Accepted: 10/05/2023] [Indexed: 12/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Background Mental health issues are often associated with poor self-control. Therefore, effective interventions against mental health problems should include self-control training. However, it is unclear whether the effect of self-control varies across different types of mental health problems. Methods A cross-sectional survey was conducted using the convenience sampling method at five universities in Chongqing, China, where 1,409 students reported their demographic information, level of self-control, and symptoms of irritability, depression, and anxiety. Descriptive statistical methods and a network analysis approach were employed to explore the relationship between self-control and symptoms of irritability, depression, and anxiety among 1,409 students. The bridging links between self-control and the three mental health problems were analyzed. Results The findings revealed a negative correlation between self-control and symptoms of irritability, depression, and anxiety among university students. Impulse control was found to be the bridge between self-control and irritability or anxiety symptoms, while resistance to temptation was the bridge between self-control and depressive symptoms. Conclusion These results demonstrate the different relationship between self-control with irritability, anxiety, and depressive symptoms. The findings of this study may shed light on future mental health interventions for university students during potential public health emergencies, such as prior knowledge of the main types of psychological problems among university students, which may allow for the development of precise self-control intervention strategies, such as targeting impulsivity or resistance to temptation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mu He
- Chongqing Medical and Pharmaceutical College, Chongqing, China
| | - Xiaoqing Zhan
- Medical English Department, College of Basic Medicine, Army Medical University, Chongqing, China
| | - Chang Liu
- Brain Park, Turner Institute for Brain and Mental Health and School of Psychological Sciences, Monash University, Clayton, VIC, Australia
| | - Ling Li
- College of General Education, Chongqing Water Resources and Electric Engineering College, Chongqing, China
| | - Xiaojie Zhao
- College of General Education, Chongqing Water Resources and Electric Engineering College, Chongqing, China
| | - Lei Ren
- Military Psychology Section, Logistics University of PAP, Tianjin, China
- Military Mental Health Services and Research Center, Tianjin, China
| | - Kuiliang Li
- Medical English Department, College of Basic Medicine, Army Medical University, Chongqing, China
| | - Xi Luo
- Medical English Department, College of Basic Medicine, Army Medical University, Chongqing, China
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4
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Bien E, Smith K. The role of sex on sign-tracking acquisition and outcome devaluation sensitivity in Long Evans rats. Behav Brain Res 2023; 455:114656. [PMID: 37683812 PMCID: PMC10591930 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbr.2023.114656] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/05/2023] [Revised: 08/25/2023] [Accepted: 09/04/2023] [Indexed: 09/10/2023]
Abstract
Cues that predict rewards can trigger reward-seeking behaviors but also can, in some cases, become targets of motivation themselves. One behavioral phenomenon that captures this idea is sign-tracking in which animals, including humans, interact with reward-predictive cues even though it is not necessary to do so. Sign-tracking in rats has been studied in the domain of motivation and in how motivated behaviors can or cannot become excessive and habit-like over time. Many prior studies look at sign-tracking examine this behavior in male subjects, but there are few papers that look at this behavior in female subjects. Moreover, it is unknown where there might be sex-related variation in how flexible sign-tracking is when faced with changing reward values. Therefore, we asked if there were sex differences in the acquisition of sign-tracking behavior and if there were any sex differences in how sensitive animals were in their sign-tracking following reward devaluation. In contrast to previous reports, we found that males and females show no differences in how they acquire sign-tracking and in ultimate sign-tracking levels following training. Additionally, we found no difference in how quickly males and females learned to devalue the food reward, and we found no differences in sign-tracking levels by sex following outcome devaluation. We believe that this is primarily due to our experiment being performed in the Long Evans strain but also believe that there are many other factors contributing to differences between our study and previous work.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elizabeth Bien
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, 6207 Moore Hall, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH 03755, USA.
| | - Kyle Smith
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, 6207 Moore Hall, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH 03755, USA
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Duffer K, Gillis ZS, Morrison SE. Excitatory and Inhibitory Signaling in the Nucleus Accumbens Encode Different Aspects of a Pavlovian Cue in Sign Tracking and Goal Tracking Rats. eNeuro 2023; 10:ENEURO.0196-23.2023. [PMID: 37643864 PMCID: PMC10488220 DOI: 10.1523/eneuro.0196-23.2023] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/07/2023] [Revised: 07/26/2023] [Accepted: 08/08/2023] [Indexed: 08/31/2023] Open
Abstract
When a Pavlovian cue is presented separately from its associated reward, some animals will acquire a sign tracking (ST) response - approach and/or interaction with the cue - while others will acquire a goal tracking response - approach to the site of reward. We have previously shown that cue-evoked excitations in the nucleus accumbens (NAc) encode the vigor of both behaviors; in contrast, reward-related responses diverge over the course of training, possibly reflecting neurochemical differences between sign tracker and goal tracker individuals. However, a substantial subset of neurons in the NAc exhibit inhibitory, rather than excitatory, cue-evoked responses, and the evolution of their signaling during Pavlovian conditioning remains unknown. Using single-neuron recordings in behaving rats, we show that NAc neurons with cue-evoked inhibitions have distinct coding properties from neurons with cue-evoked excitations. Cue-evoked inhibitions become more numerous over the course of training and, like excitations, may encode the vigor of sign tracking and goal tracking behavior. However, the responses of cue-inhibited neurons do not evolve differently between sign tracker and goal tracker individuals. Moreover, cue-evoked inhibitions, unlike excitations, are insensitive to extinction of the cue-reward relationship. Finally, we show that cue-evoked excitations are greatly diminished by reward devaluation, while inhibitory cue responses are virtually unaffected. Overall, these findings converge with existing evidence that cue-excited neurons in NAc, but not cue-inhibited neurons, are profoundly sensitive to the same behavior variations that are often associated with changes in dopamine release.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kyle Duffer
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15260
| | - Zachary S Gillis
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15260
| | - Sara E Morrison
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15260
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6
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Townsend ES, Amaya KA, Smedley EB, Smith KS. Nucleus accumbens core acetylcholine receptors modulate the balance of flexible and inflexible cue-directed motivation. Sci Rep 2023; 13:13375. [PMID: 37591961 PMCID: PMC10435540 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-40439-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/13/2023] [Accepted: 08/10/2023] [Indexed: 08/19/2023] Open
Abstract
Sign-tracking is a conditioned response where animals interact with reward-predictive cues due to the cues having motivational value, or incentive salience. The nucleus accumbens core (NAc) has been implicated in mediating the sign-tracking response. Additionally, acetylcholine (ACh) transmission throughout the striatum has been attributed to both incentive motivation and behavioral flexibility. Here, we demonstrate a role for NAc ACh receptors in the flexibility of sign-tracking. Sign-tracking animals were exposed to an omission contingency, in which vigorous sign-tracking was punished by reward omission. Animals rapidly adjusted their behavior, but they maintained sign-tracking in a less vigorous manner that did not cancel reward. Within this context of sign-tracking being persistent yet flexible in structure, blockade of NAc nicotinic receptors (nAChRs) led to a persistence in the initial sign-tracking response during omission followed by a period of change in the makeup of sign-tracking, whereas blockade of muscarinic receptors (mAChRs) oppositely enhanced the omission-related development of the new sign-tracking behaviors. Later, once omission learning had occurred, nAChR blockade uniquely led to reduced sign-tracking and elevated reward-directed behaviors instead. These results indicate that NAc ACh receptors have opposing roles in maintaining learned patterns of sign-tracking, with nAChRs having a special involvement in regulating the structure of the sign-tracking response.
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Affiliation(s)
- Erica S Townsend
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Dartmouth College, 3 Maynard Street, Hanover, NH, 03755, USA.
| | - Kenneth A Amaya
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Dartmouth College, 3 Maynard Street, Hanover, NH, 03755, USA
- Department of Neuroscience, Tufts University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Elizabeth B Smedley
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Dartmouth College, 3 Maynard Street, Hanover, NH, 03755, USA
- Department of Psychology, Temple University, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Kyle S Smith
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Dartmouth College, 3 Maynard Street, Hanover, NH, 03755, USA
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Colaizzi JM, Flagel SB, Gearhardt AN, Borowitz MA, Kuplicki R, Zotev V, Clark G, Coronado J, Abbott T, Paulus MP. The propensity to sign-track is associated with externalizing behavior and distinct patterns of reward-related brain activation in youth. Sci Rep 2023; 13:4402. [PMID: 36928057 PMCID: PMC10020483 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-30906-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/21/2022] [Accepted: 03/03/2023] [Indexed: 03/18/2023] Open
Abstract
Externalizing behaviors in childhood often predict impulse control disorders in adulthood; however, the underlying bio-behavioral risk factors are incompletely understood. In animals, the propensity to sign-track, or the degree to which incentive motivational value is attributed to reward cues, is associated with externalizing-type behaviors and deficits in executive control. Using a Pavlovian conditioned approach paradigm, we quantified sign-tracking in 40 healthy 9-12-year-olds. We also measured parent-reported externalizing behaviors and anticipatory neural activations to outcome-predicting cues using the monetary incentive delay fMRI task. Sign-tracking was associated with attentional and inhibitory control deficits and the degree of amygdala, but not cortical, activation during reward anticipation. These findings support the hypothesis that youth with a propensity to sign-track are prone to externalizing tendencies, with an over-reliance on subcortical cue-reactive brain systems. This research highlights sign-tracking as a promising experimental approach delineating the behavioral and neural circuitry of individuals at risk for externalizing disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Janna M Colaizzi
- Laureate Institute for Brain Research, 6655 S Yale Ave, Tulsa, OK, USA.
| | - Shelly B Flagel
- Michigan Neuroscience Institute and Department of Psychiatry, University of Michigan, 205 Zina Pitcher Pl, Ann Arbor, MI, 48109, USA
| | - Ashley N Gearhardt
- Department of Psychology, University of Michigan, 530 Church St, Ann Arbor, MI, 48109, USA
| | - Michelle A Borowitz
- Department of Psychology, University of Michigan, 530 Church St, Ann Arbor, MI, 48109, USA
| | - Rayus Kuplicki
- Laureate Institute for Brain Research, 6655 S Yale Ave, Tulsa, OK, USA
| | - Vadim Zotev
- Laureate Institute for Brain Research, 6655 S Yale Ave, Tulsa, OK, USA
| | - Grace Clark
- Laureate Institute for Brain Research, 6655 S Yale Ave, Tulsa, OK, USA
| | - Jennifer Coronado
- Laureate Institute for Brain Research, 6655 S Yale Ave, Tulsa, OK, USA
| | - Talia Abbott
- Laureate Institute for Brain Research, 6655 S Yale Ave, Tulsa, OK, USA
| | - Martin P Paulus
- Laureate Institute for Brain Research, 6655 S Yale Ave, Tulsa, OK, USA
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8
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Collins V, Bornhoft KN, Wolff A, Sinha S, Saunders BT. Hierarchical cue control of cocaine seeking in the face of cost. Psychopharmacology (Berl) 2023; 240:461-476. [PMID: 36069951 PMCID: PMC10131580 DOI: 10.1007/s00213-022-06218-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/04/2022] [Accepted: 08/22/2022] [Indexed: 12/30/2022]
Abstract
RATIONALE Addiction is characterized by intermittent drug seeking despite rising costs. This behavior is heavily influenced by environmental stimuli that signal drug availability and reinforce drug seeking. OBJECTIVE To establish the relationship between three key aspects of human drug use in rats: the intermittent, binge nature of drug intake, the motivational conflict of drug seeking in the face of escalating negative costs, and the ability of different drug cues to interact to modulate relapse. METHODS Male and female rats were trained to self-administer cocaine on an intermittent access schedule, where brief drug-availability states were signaled by a shift in the ambient lighting of the environment, and cocaine infusions were signaled by a separate proximal discrete cue. Rats then went through a conflict procedure, where foot shock intensity associated with cocaine seeking was escalated until intake was suppressed. We then completed relapse tests where the drug-delivery cue was noncontingently presented alone, or in the context of dynamic drug-availability state transitions. RESULTS Intermittent access spurred psychomotor sensitization and binge-like cocaine intake. The intensity of binge-like drug taking during training was predictive of later drug seeking despite escalating costs during conflict. In relapse tests, the ability of a proximal discrete drug cue to trigger relapse was gated by the presence of a global cue signaling drug-availability state transitions. CONCLUSIONS Our results suggest that the pattern of drug intake plays a role in many features of addiction, including modifying an individual's willingness to endure high costs associated with drug seeking. Furthermore, our studies indicate that drug-related sensory information can be hierarchically organized to exert a dynamic modulating influence on drug-seeking motivation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Val Collins
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA.,Medical Discovery Team On Addiction, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA.,University of California, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Kaisa N Bornhoft
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA.,Medical Discovery Team On Addiction, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA
| | - Amy Wolff
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA.,Medical Discovery Team On Addiction, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA
| | - Sonal Sinha
- Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Benjamin T Saunders
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA. .,Medical Discovery Team On Addiction, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA.
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Versace F, Robinson JD, Cinciripini PM. Toward neuromarkers for tailored smoking cessation treatments. Addiction Neuroscience 2023; 6. [PMID: 37034180 PMCID: PMC10081511 DOI: 10.1016/j.addicn.2023.100075] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/16/2023]
Abstract
Vulnerability to compulsive drug use stems from dysregulated activity within the neural networks that underlie reward and executive functions. Empirical evidence suggests that a) attributing high motivational salience to drug-related stimuli leads to compulsive drug seeking and b) cognitive control deficits lead to compulsive drug taking. Noninvasive neuroimaging techniques enable brain activity monitoring during affective and cognitive processing and are paving the way to precision medicine for substance use disorders. Identifying robust neuromarkers of affective and cognitive dysregulation would allow clinicians to personalize treatments by targeting individual psychophysiological vulnerabilities. However, methodological choices have biased the field toward experimental paradigms that cannot optimally assess individual differences in the motivational salience of drug-related cues and in the ability to control drug-related decisions, choices which have hindered the identification of clinically relevant neuromarkers. Here, we show that once these shortcomings are amended, replicable neuromarkers of the tendency to attribute motivational salience to drug-related cues and the ability to control drug-related decisions emerge. While we use tobacco use disorder as a model, we also show that the methodological issues highlighted here are relevant to other disorders characterized by maladaptive appetitive behaviors.
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10
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Kohen CB, Cofresí RU, Bartholow BD, Piasecki TM. Alcohol craving in the natural environment: Moderating roles of cue exposure, drinking, and alcohol sensitivity. Exp Clin Psychopharmacol 2023; 31:57-71. [PMID: 35025586 PMCID: PMC9276840 DOI: 10.1037/pha0000540] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/26/2023]
Abstract
Effects of cue exposure and alcohol consumption (e.g., priming doses) on craving for alcohol have been examined in largely separate literature, limiting what is known about their potential interaction. Individuals with low alcohol sensitivity, a known risk factor for alcohol use disorder (AUD), exhibit stronger cue-elicited craving than their higher-sensitivity (HS) peers in both laboratory and real-world contexts. Here, underage drinkers (N = 155) completed a 21-day ecological momentary assessment (EMA) protocol in which they recorded exposure to alcohol cues and levels of craving during both nondrinking and postdrinking moments. Multilevel modeling detected a significant interaction of cue exposure and postdrinking status on craving. Cue-induced craving was increased in postdrinking moments compared to nondrinking moments. Contrary to prediction, cue-elicited increase in craving during nondrinking moments was stronger in participants reporting higher sensitivity to alcohol. In the presence of cues, lower sensitivity was robustly related to craving intensity in the postdrinking state but unrelated to craving during nondrinking moments. Craving during drinking episodes in the natural environment is magnified by the presence of alcohol cues, potentially contributing to the maintenance or acceleration of drinking episodes. Moreover, lower-sensitivity drinkers may be particularly susceptible to the combined effects of cue exposure and postdrinking status on alcohol craving. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).
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Moin Afshar N, Cinotti F, Martin D, Khamassi M, Calu DJ, Taylor JR, Groman SM. Reward-Mediated, Model-Free Reinforcement-Learning Mechanisms in Pavlovian and Instrumental Tasks Are Related. J Neurosci 2023; 43:458-471. [PMID: 36216504 PMCID: PMC9864557 DOI: 10.1523/jneurosci.1113-22.2022] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/09/2022] [Revised: 10/03/2022] [Accepted: 10/06/2022] [Indexed: 01/25/2023] Open
Abstract
Model-free and model-based computations are argued to distinctly update action values that guide decision-making processes. It is not known, however, if these model-free and model-based reinforcement learning mechanisms recruited in operationally based instrumental tasks parallel those engaged by pavlovian-based behavioral procedures. Recently, computational work has suggested that individual differences in the attribution of incentive salience to reward predictive cues, that is, sign- and goal-tracking behaviors, are also governed by variations in model-free and model-based value representations that guide behavior. Moreover, it is not appreciated if these systems that are characterized computationally using model-free and model-based algorithms are conserved across tasks for individual animals. In the current study, we used a within-subject design to assess sign-tracking and goal-tracking behaviors using a pavlovian conditioned approach task and then characterized behavior using an instrumental multistage decision-making (MSDM) task in male rats. We hypothesized that both pavlovian and instrumental learning processes may be driven by common reinforcement-learning mechanisms. Our data confirm that sign-tracking behavior was associated with greater reward-mediated, model-free reinforcement learning and that it was also linked to model-free reinforcement learning in the MSDM task. Computational analyses revealed that pavlovian model-free updating was correlated with model-free reinforcement learning in the MSDM task. These data provide key insights into the computational mechanisms mediating associative learning that could have important implications for normal and abnormal states.SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT Model-free and model-based computations that guide instrumental decision-making processes may also be recruited in pavlovian-based behavioral procedures. Here, we used a within-subject design to test the hypothesis that both pavlovian and instrumental learning processes were driven by common reinforcement-learning mechanisms. Sign-tracking and goal-tracking behaviors were assessed in rats using a pavlovian conditioned approach task, and then instrumental behavior was characterized using an MSDM task. We report that sign-tracking behavior was associated with greater model-free, but not model-based, learning in the MSDM task. These data suggest that pavlovian and instrumental behaviors may be driven by conserved reinforcement-learning mechanisms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Neema Moin Afshar
- Department of Psychiatry, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, Connecticut 06511
| | - François Cinotti
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, Oxford OX2 6GG, United Kingdom
| | - David Martin
- Department of Anatomy and Neurobiology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland 21201
| | - Mehdi Khamassi
- Institute of Intelligent Systems and Robotics, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Sorbonne University, 75005 Paris, France
| | - Donna J Calu
- Department of Anatomy and Neurobiology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland 21201
- Program in Neuroscience, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland 21201
| | - Jane R Taylor
- Department of Psychiatry, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, Connecticut 06511
- Department of Psychology, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520
| | - Stephanie M Groman
- Department of Psychiatry, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, Connecticut 06511
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Minnesota Medical School, Minneapolis, Minnesota 55455
- Department of Psychology, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minnesota 55455
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12
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Cope LM, Gheidi A, Martz ME, Duval ER, Khalil H, Allerton T, Morrow JD. A mechanical task for measuring sign- and goal-tracking in humans: A proof-of-concept study. Behav Brain Res 2023; 436:114112. [PMID: 36115435 PMCID: PMC10153473 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbr.2022.114112] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/28/2022] [Revised: 09/07/2022] [Accepted: 09/08/2022] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Cue-based associative learning (i.e., Pavlovian conditioning) is a foundational component of behavior in almost all forms of animal life and may provide insight into individual differences in addiction liability. Cues can take on incentive-motivational properties (i.e., incentive salience) through Pavlovian learning. Extensive testing with non-human animals (primarily rats) has demonstrated significant variation among individuals in the behaviors this type of learning evokes. So-named "sign-trackers" and "goal-trackers" have been examined in many studies of non-human animals, but this work in humans is still a nascent area of research. In the present proof-of-concept study, we used a Pavlovian conditioned approach task to investigate human sign- and goal-tracking in emerging adults. Conditioned behaviors that developed over the course of the task were directed toward the reward-cue and toward the reward location. Participants' eye-gaze and behavior during the task were submitted to a latent profile analysis, which revealed three groups defined as sign-trackers (n = 10), goal-trackers (n = 4), and intermediate responders (n = 36). Impulsivity was a significant predictor of the sign-tracking group relative to the goal-tracking group. The present study provides preliminary evidence that a simple procedure can produce learned Pavlovian conditioned approach behavior in humans. Though further investigation is required, findings provide a promising step toward the long-term goal of translating important insights gleaned from basic research into treatment strategies that can be applied to clinical populations.
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Affiliation(s)
- L M Cope
- Department of Psychiatry and Addiction Center, University of Michigan, 4250 Plymouth Road, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA.
| | - A Gheidi
- Biomedical Science Research Building, University of Michigan, 109 Zina Pitcher Place, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA.
| | - M E Martz
- Department of Psychiatry and Addiction Center, University of Michigan, 4250 Plymouth Road, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA.
| | - E R Duval
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Michigan, 4250 Plymouth Road, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA.
| | - H Khalil
- Michigan Neuroscience Institute, University of Michigan, 205 Zina Pitcher Place, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA.
| | - T Allerton
- Biomedical Science Research Building, University of Michigan, 109 Zina Pitcher Place, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA.
| | - J D Morrow
- Department of Psychiatry and Addiction Center, University of Michigan, 4250 Plymouth Road, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA; Biomedical Science Research Building, University of Michigan, 109 Zina Pitcher Place, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA.
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13
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Webber HE, de Dios C, Wardle MC, Suchting R, Green CE, Schmitz JM, Lane SD, Versace F. Electrophysiological responses to emotional and cocaine cues reveal individual neuroaffective profiles in cocaine users. Exp Clin Psychopharmacol 2022; 30:514-524. [PMID: 33630644 PMCID: PMC8406778 DOI: 10.1037/pha0000450] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Abstract
Smokers with stronger neuroaffective responses to drug-related cues compared to nondrug-related pleasant images (C > P) are more vulnerable to compulsive smoking than individuals with the opposite brain reactivity profile (P > C). However, it is unknown if these neurobehavioral profiles exist in individuals abusing other drugs. We tested whether individuals with cocaine use disorder (CUD) show similar neuroaffective profiles to smokers. We also monitored eye movements to assess attentional bias toward cues and we further performed exploratory analyses on demographics, personality, and drug use between profiles. Participants with CUD (n = 43) viewed pleasant, unpleasant, cocaine, and neutral images while we recorded electroencephalogram. For each picture category, we computed the amplitude of the late positive potential (LPP), an event-related potential component that reflects motivational relevance. k-means clustering classified participants based on their LPP responses. In line with what has been observed in smokers, clustering participants using LPP responses revealed the presence of two groups: one with larger LPPs to pleasant images compared to cocaine images (P > C) and one group with larger LPPs to cocaine images compared to pleasant images (C > P). Individuals with the C > P reactivity profile also had higher attentional bias toward drug cues. The two groups did not differ on demographic and drug use characteristics, however individuals with the C > P profile reported lower distress tolerance, higher anhedonia, and higher posttraumatic stress symptoms compared to the P > C group. This is the first study to report the presence of these neuroaffective profiles in individuals with CUD, indicating that this pattern may cut across addiction populations. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).
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Affiliation(s)
- Heather E. Webber
- Faillace Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences,
McGovern Medical School, University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston,
Houston, TX
| | - Constanza de Dios
- Faillace Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences,
McGovern Medical School, University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston,
Houston, TX
| | - Margaret C. Wardle
- Department of Psychology, University of Illinois at
Chicago, Chicago, IL
| | - Robert Suchting
- Faillace Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences,
McGovern Medical School, University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston,
Houston, TX
| | - Charles E. Green
- Department of Pediatrics, McGovern Medical School,
University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, Houston, TX
| | - Joy M. Schmitz
- Faillace Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences,
McGovern Medical School, University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston,
Houston, TX
| | - Scott D. Lane
- Faillace Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences,
McGovern Medical School, University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston,
Houston, TX
| | - Francesco Versace
- Department of Behavioral Science, The University of Texas
MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX
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Wells TJ, Krejčová L, Binter J, Pfaus JG, Horsley RR. No significant effect of frequent online sexual behaviour on Pavlovian-to-instrumental transfer (PIT): Implications for compulsive sexual behaviour disorder. PLoS One 2022; 17:e0274913. [PMID: 36178949 PMCID: PMC9524690 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0274913] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/04/2021] [Accepted: 09/06/2022] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Reward based learning is broadly acknowledged to underpin the development and maintenance of addictive behaviour although the mechanism in sexual compulsivity is less understood. Using a Pavlovian-to-Instrumental Transfer (PIT) task we tested whether the motivational aspect of conditioned Pavlovian conditioned stimulus invigorated instrumental responding in relation to specific compatible monetary rewards. Performance on the task was analysed between two groups of males based on Low (N = 38) and High (N = 41) self-report online sexual behaviour (OSB). Psychometric tests including sexual compulsivity scale and behavioural activation/behavioural inhibition (BIS/BAS) were also administered to determine the relationship between OSB and general reward sensitivity. We show clear evidence of acquisition in the Pavlovian and instrumental conditioning phases. Specific transfer effect was greater in the High-OSB group although the difference compared to the Low-OSB group was non-significant. OSB negatively correlated with both BIS and BAS indicative of introversion and low reward sensitivity. OSB positively correlated with sexual compulsivity although it is unclear whether individuals in the High-OSB group considered their behaviour either excessive or problematic. These findings contribute to the ongoing debate regarding the nature of problematic OSB. Fundamental differences in motivational characteristics and mechanism contributing to compulsive behaviour in relation to high-OSB might indicate incompatibility with behavioural addiction models. PIT was not enhanced in high-OSB by appetitive conditioning, although problematic OSB could stem from failure to inhibit actions. Further research should investigate whether aversive conditioning differentially affects responding in high-OSB individuals, potentially explaining perseverant behaviour despite negative consequences.
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Affiliation(s)
- Timothy J. Wells
- Center for Sexual Health and Intervention, Czech National Institute of Mental Health, Klecany, Czech Republic
- * E-mail:
| | - Lucie Krejčová
- Center for Sexual Health and Intervention, Czech National Institute of Mental Health, Klecany, Czech Republic
| | - Jakub Binter
- Department of Philosophy and History of Science, Charles University, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - James G. Pfaus
- Center for Sexual Health and Intervention, Czech National Institute of Mental Health, Klecany, Czech Republic
- Department of Psychology and Life Sciences, Charles University, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Rachel R. Horsley
- Psychology Department, Nottingham Trent University, Nottingham, United Kingdom
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15
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Michael Holden J, Salem A. Dextromethorphan Reduces Sign-Tracking but Not Goal-Tracking in Male Sprague-Dawley Rats. Neurobiol Learn Mem 2022; 192:107635. [PMID: 35595027 DOI: 10.1016/j.nlm.2022.107635] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/06/2022] [Revised: 05/11/2022] [Accepted: 05/13/2022] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
Sign-tracking is a well-known phenomenon in appetitive Pavlovian conditioning in which subjects approach the site of a conditioned stimulus (CS) associated with an appetitive unconditioned stimulus (US) even when the two are located separately. Control of sign-tracking may be important in rehabilitation from drug dependence to help ward off relapse. Recent studies have found success in using ketamine to reduce sign-tracking. In this study, we employed a similar but unscheduled drug, dextromethorphan (DXM), which affects many of the same molecular targets as ketamine, in an attempt to reduce sign-tracking in a standard paradigm. DXM was found to reduce sign-tracking at the doses examined in this study, while goal-tracking (approaching the site of the US rather than CS) was relatively unaffected. DXM offers advantages over ketamine in terms of use with patients and may have some utility in rehabilitation.
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Stowe TA, Pitts EG, Leach AC, Iacino MC, Niere F, Graul B, Raab-Graham KF, Yorgason JT, Ferris MJ. Diurnal rhythms in cholinergic modulation of rapid dopamine signals and associative learning in the striatum. Cell Rep 2022; 39:110633. [PMID: 35385720 PMCID: PMC9148619 DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2022.110633] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/26/2021] [Revised: 12/20/2021] [Accepted: 03/16/2022] [Indexed: 11/26/2022] Open
Abstract
Dysregulation of biological rhythms plays a role in a wide range of psychiatric disorders. We report mechanistic insights into the rhythms of rapid dopamine signals and cholinergic interneurons (CINs) working in concert in the rodent striatum. These rhythms mediate diurnal variation in conditioned responses to reward-associated cues. We report that the dopamine signal-to-noise ratio varies according to the time of day and that phasic signals are magnified during the middle of the dark cycle in rats. We show that CINs provide the mechanism for diurnal variation in rapid dopamine signals by serving as a gain of function to the dopamine signal-to-noise ratio that adjusts across time of day. We also show that conditioned responses to reward-associated cues exhibit diurnal rhythms, with cue-directed behaviors observed exclusively midway through the dark cycle. We conclude that the rapid dopamine signaling rhythm is mediated by a diurnal rhythm in CIN activity, which influences learning and motivated behaviors across the time of day.
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Affiliation(s)
- Taylor A Stowe
- Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, Wake Forest School of Medicine, 1 Medical Center Blvd., Winston-Salem, NC 27157, USA
| | - Elizabeth G Pitts
- Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, Wake Forest School of Medicine, 1 Medical Center Blvd., Winston-Salem, NC 27157, USA
| | - Amy C Leach
- Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, Wake Forest School of Medicine, 1 Medical Center Blvd., Winston-Salem, NC 27157, USA
| | - Melody C Iacino
- Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, Wake Forest School of Medicine, 1 Medical Center Blvd., Winston-Salem, NC 27157, USA
| | - Farr Niere
- Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, Wake Forest School of Medicine, 1 Medical Center Blvd., Winston-Salem, NC 27157, USA
| | - Benjamin Graul
- Department of Cellular Biology and Physiology, Neuroscience Center, Brigham Young University, Provo, UT 84602, USA
| | - Kimberly F Raab-Graham
- Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, Wake Forest School of Medicine, 1 Medical Center Blvd., Winston-Salem, NC 27157, USA
| | - Jordan T Yorgason
- Department of Cellular Biology and Physiology, Neuroscience Center, Brigham Young University, Provo, UT 84602, USA
| | - Mark J Ferris
- Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, Wake Forest School of Medicine, 1 Medical Center Blvd., Winston-Salem, NC 27157, USA.
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17
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Cofresí RU, Piasecki TM, Bartholow BD, Schachtman TR. Enhanced conditioned "liking" of novel visual cues paired with alcohol or non-alcohol beverage container images among individuals at higher risk for alcohol use disorder. Psychopharmacology (Berl) 2022; 239:3567-3578. [PMID: 36094618 PMCID: PMC9464611 DOI: 10.1007/s00213-022-06231-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/04/2022] [Accepted: 08/29/2022] [Indexed: 11/07/2022]
Abstract
RATIONALE/OBJECTIVE This study used an evaluative conditioning (EC) procedure to assess the affective properties of a CS for ingested drug reward in humans. Specifically, the study tested whether the evaluative response ("liking"/"disliking") to an arbitrary visual stimulus ("CS2," e.g., a purple hexagon) could be changed through pairings with an alcohol or non-alcohol beverage cue ("CS1," e.g., a full wine glass, a juice box), which is ostensibly a conditioned visual predictive stimulus for alcohol or non-alcohol liquid reward, respectively. METHODS Participants (N = 369, 18-23 years, 66% female, 79% white, 21% reporting no alcohol use ever or in the past year) received 24 CS1 pairings with each CS2. CS2 and CS1 evaluations were assessed pre- and post-conditioning. RESULTS Alcohol and non-alcohol CS2 "liking" correlated with alcohol use. "Liking" of the alcohol but not non-alcohol CS1 also correlated with alcohol use. Alcohol CS1 "liking" also correlated with alcohol and non-alcohol CS2 'liking," whereas non-alcohol CS1 'liking" correlated with non-alcohol but not alcohol CS2 "liking." CONCLUSIONS Taken together, findings support the idea that drug-related visual stimuli acquire appetitive (hedonic and/or incentive) properties as a function of individual differences in drug use, which entail individual differences in exposure to the conditioning effects of addictive substances like alcohol. Findings also suggest a link between drug use and the propensity to attribute affective/motivational significance to reward-predictive cues in general.
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Affiliation(s)
- Roberto U. Cofresí
- grid.134936.a0000 0001 2162 3504Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO 65211 USA
| | - Thomas M. Piasecki
- grid.14003.360000 0001 2167 3675Center for Tobacco Research and Intervention and Department of Medicine, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, USA
| | - Bruce D. Bartholow
- grid.134936.a0000 0001 2162 3504Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO 65211 USA
| | - Todd R. Schachtman
- grid.134936.a0000 0001 2162 3504Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO 65211 USA
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18
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D'Amour‐Horvat V, Cox SML, Dagher A, Kolivakis T, Jaworska N, Leyton M. Cocaine cue-induced mesocorticolimbic activation in cocaine users: Effects of personality traits, lifetime drug use, and acute stimulant ingestion. Addict Biol 2022; 27:e13094. [PMID: 34463411 DOI: 10.1111/adb.13094] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/20/2021] [Revised: 08/06/2021] [Accepted: 08/09/2021] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
Stimulant drug-paired cues can acquire the ability to activate mesocorticolimbic pathways and lead to new bouts of drug use. Studies in laboratory animals suggest that these effects are augmented by progressively greater drug use histories, impulsive personality traits, and acute drug ingestion. As a preliminary test of these hypotheses in humans, we exposed cocaine users (n = 14) and healthy volunteers (n = 10) to cocaine-related videos during two functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) sessions, once following acute administration of placebo and once following d-amphetamine (0.3 mg/kg, p.o.). Across sessions, cocaine users showed larger cocaine cue-induced responses than healthy controls in the associative striatum and midbrain. Among the cocaine users, larger drug cue-induced responses during the placebo session were correlated with higher Barratt Impulsiveness Scale (BIS-11) nonplanning scores (associative striatum) and greater lifetime use of stimulant drugs (limbic, associative, and sensorimotor striatum). The administration of d-amphetamine did not augment the cue-induced activations, but, in cocaine users, drug cue-induced striatal activations were more widespread following prolonged cocaine cue exposure. Together, these effects of past and present drug use might aggravate the risk for stimulant drug use problems.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Sylvia M. L. Cox
- Department of Psychiatry McGill University Montreal Quebec Canada
| | - Alain Dagher
- Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery McGill University Montreal Quebec Canada
| | | | - Natalia Jaworska
- Institute of Mental Health Research University of Ottawa Ottawa Ontario Canada
- Department of Cellular and Molecular Medicine University of Ottawa Ottawa Ontario Canada
| | - Marco Leyton
- Department of Psychology McGill University Montreal Quebec Canada
- Department of Psychiatry McGill University Montreal Quebec Canada
- Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery McGill University Montreal Quebec Canada
- Center for Studies in Behavioral Neurobiology Concordia University Montreal Quebec Canada
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19
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Hathaway BA, Schumacher JD, Hrelja KM, Winstanley CA. Serotonin 2C Antagonism in the Lateral Orbitofrontal Cortex Ameliorates Cue-Enhanced Risk Preference and Restores Sensitivity to Reinforcer Devaluation in Male Rats. eNeuro 2021; 8:ENEURO. [PMID: 34815296 DOI: 10.1523/ENEURO.0341-21.2021] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/19/2021] [Revised: 10/27/2021] [Accepted: 11/16/2021] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Previous research has indicated that reward-paired cues can enhance disadvantageous risky choice in both humans and rodents. Systemic administration of a serotonin 2C receptor antagonist can attenuate this cue-induced risk preference in rats. However, the neurocognitive mechanisms mediating this effect are currently unknown. We therefore assessed whether the serotonin 2C receptor antagonist RS 102221 is able to attenuate cue-enhanced risk preference via its actions in the lateral orbitofrontal cortex (lOFC) or prelimbic (PrL) area of the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC). A total of 32 male Long–Evans rats were trained on the cued version of the rat gambling task (rGT), a rodent analog of the human Iowa gambling task, and bilateral guide cannulae were implanted into the lOFC or PrL. Intra-lOFC infusions of the 5-HT2C antagonist RS 102221 reduced risky choice in animals that showed a preference for the risky options of the rGT at baseline. This effect was not observed in optimal decision-makers, nor those that received infusions targeting the PrL. Given prior data showing that 5-HT2C antagonists also improve reversal learning through the same neural locus, we hypothesized that reward-concurrent cues may amplify risky decision-making through cognitive inflexibility. We therefore devalued the sugar pellet rewards used in the cued rGT (crGT) through satiation and observed that decision-making patterns did not shift unless animals also received intra-lOFC RS 102221. Collectively, these data suggest that the lOFC is one critical site through which reward-concurrent cues promote risky choice patterns that are insensitive to reinforcer devaluation, and that 5-HT2C antagonism may optimize choice by facilitating exploration.
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Abstract
This article reviews recent findings from the author’s laboratory that may provide new insights into how habits are made and broken. Habits are extensively practiced behaviors that are automatically evoked by antecedent cues and performed without their goal (or reinforcer) “in mind.” Goal-directed actions, in contrast, are instrumental behaviors that are performed because their goal is remembered and valued. New results suggest that actions may transition to habit after extended practice when conditions encourage reduced attention to the behavior. Consistent with theories of attention and learning, a behavior may command less attention (and become habitual) as its reinforcer becomes well-predicted by cues in the environment; habit learning is prevented if presentation of the reinforcer is uncertain. Other results suggest that habits are not permanent, and that goal-direction can be restored by several environmental manipulations, including exposure to unexpected reinforcers or context change. Habits are more context-dependent than goal-directed actions are. Habit learning causes retroactive interference in a way that is reminiscent of extinction: It inhibits, but does not erase, goal-direction in a context-dependent way. The findings have implications for the understanding of habitual and goal-directed control of behavior as well as disordered behaviors like addictions.
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21
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Delgado-Rodríguez R, Versace F, Hernández-Rivero I, Guerra P, Fernández-Santaella MC, Miccoli L. Food addiction symptoms are related to neuroaffective responses to preferred binge food and erotic cues. Appetite 2021; 168:105687. [PMID: 34509546 DOI: 10.1016/j.appet.2021.105687] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/26/2021] [Revised: 09/01/2021] [Accepted: 09/06/2021] [Indexed: 12/27/2022]
Abstract
It has been proposed that some individuals succumb to maladaptive eating behaviors because, like those with addiction, they attribute high incentive salience to food-associated cues. Here, we tested whether women that attribute high incentive salience to food-associated cues report high food addiction symptomatology. In 76 college women, we assessed self-reported food addiction symptoms using the Yale Food Addiction Scale and we recorded event-related potentials (ERPs, a direct measure of brain activity) to preferred food, erotic, unpleasant, and neutral images. We used the amplitude of the late positive potential (LPP, a component of the ERPs) as an index of the incentive salience attributed to the images. Using a multivariate classification algorithm (k-means cluster analysis), we identified two neuroaffective reactivity profiles that have been previously associated with individual differences in the tendency to attribute incentive salience to cues and with differences in vulnerability to addictive behaviors. Results showed that women with elevated LPP responses to preferred food cues relative to erotic images report higher food addiction symptoms than women with low LPP responses to preferred food cues relative to other motivationally relevant stimuli. These results support the hypothesis that individual differences in the tendency to attribute incentive salience to food cues play an important role in modulating food addiction symptomatology.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Francesco Versace
- Department of Behavioral Science, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, USA.
| | - Isabel Hernández-Rivero
- Mind, Brain, and Behavior Research Center (CIMCYC), (University of Granada), Campus de Cartuja s/n, 18071, Granada, Spain.
| | - Pedro Guerra
- Mind, Brain, and Behavior Research Center (CIMCYC), (University of Granada), Campus de Cartuja s/n, 18071, Granada, Spain.
| | - M Carmen Fernández-Santaella
- Mind, Brain, and Behavior Research Center (CIMCYC), (University of Granada), Campus de Cartuja s/n, 18071, Granada, Spain.
| | - Laura Miccoli
- Mind, Brain, and Behavior Research Center (CIMCYC), (University of Granada), Campus de Cartuja s/n, 18071, Granada, Spain.
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22
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Swintosky M, Brennan JT, Koziel C, Paulus JP, Morrison SE. Sign tracking predicts suboptimal behavior in a rodent gambling task. Psychopharmacology (Berl) 2021; 238:2645-60. [PMID: 34191111 DOI: 10.1007/s00213-021-05887-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/23/2020] [Accepted: 05/27/2021] [Indexed: 10/21/2022]
Abstract
RATIONALE Reward-associated cues can promote maladaptive behavior, including risky decision-making in a gambling setting. A propensity for sign tracking over goal tracking-i.e., interaction with a reward-predictive cue rather than the site of reward-demonstrates an individual's tendency to transfer motivational value to a cue. However, the relationship of sign tracking to risky decision-making remains unclear. OBJECTIVES To determine whether sign tracking predicts risky choice, we used a Pavlovian conditioned approach task to evaluate the tendency of male rats to sign track to a lever cue and then trained rats on a rodent gambling task (rGT) with win-associated cues. We also tested the effects of D-amphetamine, quinpirole (a D2/D3 receptor agonist), and PD128907 (a D3 receptor agonist) on gambling behavior in sign tracker and goal tracker individuals. RESULTS Increased sign tracking relative to goal tracking was associated with suboptimal performance on the rGT, including decreased selection of the optimal choice, increased selection of a high-risk/high-reward option, and increased impulsive premature choices. Amphetamine increased choices of a low-risk/low-reward option at the expense of optimal and high-risk choices, whereas quinpirole and PD128907 had little effect on choice allocation, but reduced impulsivity. Drug effects were similar across sign tracker and goal tracker individuals. CONCLUSIONS Cue reactivity, as measured by sign tracking, is predictive and may be an important driver of risky and impulsive choices in a gambling setting laden with salient audiovisual cues. Evaluating an individual's sign tracking behavior may be an avenue to predict vulnerability to pathological gambling and the efficacy of treatments.
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23
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Pohořalá V, Enkel T, Bartsch D, Spanagel R, Bernardi RE. Sign- and goal-tracking score does not correlate with addiction-like behavior following prolonged cocaine self-administration. Psychopharmacology (Berl) 2021; 238:2335-2346. [PMID: 33950271 PMCID: PMC8292273 DOI: 10.1007/s00213-021-05858-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/10/2020] [Accepted: 04/19/2021] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
RATIONALE In classical conditioning, sign-tracking reflects behavior directed toward a conditioned stimulus (CS) in expectation of a reward (unconditioned stimulus, US); in contrast, goal-tracking describes behavior directed toward the location of delivery of a US. As cues previously paired with drugs of abuse promote drug-seeking and drug-taking behavior in both animals and humans and thus contribute to the severity of substance abuse, sign-tracking may represent a maladaptive cue-focused behavior that may increase addiction vulnerability as compared to goal-tracking. Recent studies do, in fact, support this possibility. Previous work in this area has focused primarily on paradigms using relatively limited exposure to drug rather than extended drug intake. OBJECTIVES Here, we used the DSM-IV-based 3-criteria (3-CRIT) model and examined whether a relationship exists between sign- or goal-tracking phenotypes and the prevalence of criteria associated with addiction-like behavior following extended cocaine self-administration as measured in this model. METHODS Forty-six male Sprague Dawley rats underwent a Pavlovian conditioned approach (PCA) procedure and were characterized along a continuum as goal-trackers (GTs), intermediates (INTs), or sign-trackers (STs). The animals were subsequently trained to intravenous self-administer cocaine during 45 self-administration (SA) sessions and characterized for the 3 criteria outlined in the model: persistence of drug-seeking, motivation for cocaine-taking, and resistance to punishment. RESULTS We performed correlational analyses on the traits measured, finding no relationships between PCA score and addiction-like characteristics measured using the 3-CRIT model of addiction. However, STs showed significantly greater resistance to punishment than GTs. CONCLUSIONS Phenotyping along a continuum of PCA scores may not be a valid predictor for identifying vulnerability to the addiction-like behaviors examined using the 3-CRIT model. However, PCA phenotype may predict a single feature of the 3-CRIT model, resistance to punishment, among those rats classified as either STs or GTs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Veronika Pohořalá
- Institute of Psychopharmacology, Central Institute of Mental Health, Medical Faculty Mannheim, University of Heidelberg, J5, 68159, Mannheim, Germany
| | - Thomas Enkel
- Department of Molecular Biology, Central Institute of Mental Health, Medical Faculty Mannheim, University of Heidelberg, Mannheim, Germany
| | - Dusan Bartsch
- Department of Molecular Biology, Central Institute of Mental Health, Medical Faculty Mannheim, University of Heidelberg, Mannheim, Germany
| | - Rainer Spanagel
- Institute of Psychopharmacology, Central Institute of Mental Health, Medical Faculty Mannheim, University of Heidelberg, J5, 68159, Mannheim, Germany
| | - Rick E Bernardi
- Institute of Psychopharmacology, Central Institute of Mental Health, Medical Faculty Mannheim, University of Heidelberg, J5, 68159, Mannheim, Germany.
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25
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Abstract
Learning to respond appropriately to one's surrounding environment is fundamental to survival. Importantly, however, individuals vary in how they respond to cues in the environment and this variation may be a key determinant of psychopathology. The ability of seemingly neutral cues to promote maladaptive behavior is a hallmark of several psychiatric disorders including, substance use disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, eating disorders and obsessive-compulsive disorder. Thus, it is important to uncover the neural mechanisms by which such cues are able to attain inordinate control and promote psychopathological behavior. Here, we suggest that glucocorticoids play a critical role in this process. Glucocorticoids are primarily recognized as the main hormone secreted in response to stress but are known to exert their effects across the body and the brain, and to affect learning and memory, cognition and reward-related behaviors, among other things. Here we speculate that glucocorticoids act to facilitate a dopamine-dependent form of cue-reward learning that appears to be relevant to a number of psychiatric conditions. Specifically, we propose to utilize the sign-tracker/goal-tracker animal model as a means to capture individual variation in stimulus-reward learning and to isolate the role of glucocorticoid-dopamine interactions in mediating these individual differences. It is hoped that this framework will lead to the discovery of novel mechanisms that contribute to complex neuropsychiatric disorders and their comorbidity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sofia A. Lopez
- Neuroscience Graduate Program, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
| | - Shelly B. Flagel
- Neuroscience Graduate Program, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
- Michigan Neuroscience Institute, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
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26
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Doñamayor N, Ebrahimi C, Garbusow M, Wedemeyer F, Schlagenhauf F, Heinz A. Instrumental and Pavlovian Mechanisms in Alcohol Use Disorder. Curr Addict Rep 2021; 8:156-80. [DOI: 10.1007/s40429-020-00333-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/27/2022]
Abstract
Abstract
Purpose of Review
Current theories of alcohol use disorders (AUD) highlight the importance of Pavlovian and instrumental learning processes mainly based on preclinical animal studies. Here, we summarize available evidence for alterations of those processes in human participants with AUD with a focus on habitual versus goal-directed instrumental learning, Pavlovian conditioning, and Pavlovian-to-instrumental transfer (PIT) paradigms.
Recent Findings
The balance between habitual and goal-directed control in AUD participants has been studied using outcome devaluation or sequential decision-making procedures, which have found some evidence of reduced goal-directed/model-based control, but little evidence for stronger habitual responding. The employed Pavlovian learning and PIT paradigms have shown considerable differences regarding experimental procedures, e.g., alcohol-related or conventional reinforcers or stimuli.
Summary
While studies of basic learning processes in human participants with AUD support a role of Pavlovian and instrumental learning mechanisms in the development and maintenance of drug addiction, current studies are characterized by large variability regarding methodology, sample characteristics, and results, and translation from animal paradigms to human research remains challenging. Longitudinal approaches with reliable and ecologically valid paradigms of Pavlovian and instrumental processes, including alcohol-related cues and outcomes, are warranted and should be combined with state-of-the-art imaging techniques, computational approaches, and ecological momentary assessment methods.
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Pajser A, Fisher H, Pickens CL. Pre-training naltrexone increases conditioned fear learning independent of adolescent alcohol consumption history. Physiol Behav 2021; 229:113212. [PMID: 33069685 DOI: 10.1016/j.physbeh.2020.113212] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/31/2020] [Revised: 09/26/2020] [Accepted: 10/14/2020] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Abstract
Our previous research has shown a relationship between low voluntary alcohol consumption and high conditioned fear in male Long Evans rats. Here, we examined whether differences in the endogenous opioid systems might be responsible for these differences. Rats received 6 weeks of chronic intermittent to 20% alcohol (v/v) or water-only from PND 26-66. Based on their consumption during the last 2 weeks of alcohol access, the alcohol-access rats were divided into high drinking (>2.5 g/kg/24-h) or low drinking (<2 g/kg/24-h). Rats were then given injections of the preferential mu opioid receptor antagonist naltrexone (1 mg/kg, s.c.) or the selective kappa opioid receptor antagonist LY2456302 (10 mg/kg, s.c.) prior to fear conditioning and were then tested for conditioned fear 2 days later. Pre-training naltrexone increased conditioned suppression of lever-pressing during training and testing, with no differences between high versus low alcohol drinkers or between water-only versus alcohol access groups (averaged across drinking levels). There was no effect of LY2456302 on conditioned fear in any comparison. We also found no differences between high and low alcohol drinkers and no reliable effect of prior alcohol access (averaged across drinking levels) on conditioned fear. Our experiment replicates and extends previous demonstrations that a preferential MOR antagonist can increase fear learning using conditioned suppression of lever-pressing as a fear measure. However, additional research is needed to determine the cause of the differences in conditioned fear that we previously observed (as they were not observed in the current experiments).
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Affiliation(s)
- Alisa Pajser
- Department of Psychological Sciences, Kansas State University, Manhattan, KS 66506, USA
| | - Hayley Fisher
- Department of Psychological Sciences, Kansas State University, Manhattan, KS 66506, USA
| | - Charles L Pickens
- Department of Psychological Sciences, Kansas State University, Manhattan, KS 66506, USA.
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28
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Kochli DE, Keefer SE, Gyawali U, Calu DJ. Basolateral Amygdala to Nucleus Accumbens Communication Differentially Mediates Devaluation Sensitivity of Sign- and Goal-Tracking Rats. Front Behav Neurosci 2020; 14:593645. [PMID: 33324182 PMCID: PMC7723965 DOI: 10.3389/fnbeh.2020.593645] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/11/2020] [Accepted: 11/05/2020] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Abstract
Rats rely on communication between the basolateral amygdala (BLA) and nucleus accumbens (NAc) to express lever directed approach in a Pavlovian lever autoshaping (PLA) task that distinguishes sign- and goal-tracking rats. During PLA, sign-tracking rats preferentially approach an insertable lever cue, while goal-tracking rats approach a foodcup where rewards are delivered. While sign-tracking rats inflexibly respond to cues even after the associated reward is devalued, goal-tracking rats flexibly reduce responding to cues during outcome devaluation. Here, we sought to determine whether BLA-NAc communication, which is necessary for sign, but not goal-tracking, drives a rigid appetitive approach of sign-tracking rats that are insensitive to manipulations of outcome value. Using a contralateral chemogenetic inactivation design, we injected contralateral BLA and NAc core with inhibitory DREADD (hm4Di-mCherry) or control (mCherry) constructs. To determine sign- and goal-tracking groups, we trained rats in five PLA sessions in which brief lever insertion predicts food pellet delivery. We sated rats on training pellets (devalued condition) or chow (valued condition) before systemic clozapine injections (0.1 mg/kg) to inactivate BLA and contralateral NAc during two outcome devaluation probe tests, in which we measured lever and foodcup approach. Contralateral BLA-NAc chemogenetic inactivation promoted a flexible lever approach in sign-tracking rats but disrupted the flexible foodcup approach in goal-tracking rats. Consistent with a prior BLA-NAc disconnection lesion study, we find contralateral chemogenetic inactivation of BLA and NAc core reduces lever, but not the foodcup approach in PLA. Together these findings suggest rigid appetitive associative encoding in BLA-NAc of sign-tracking rats hinders the expression of flexible behavior when outcome value changes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniel E. Kochli
- Department of Anatomy and Neurobiology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, United States
| | - Sara E. Keefer
- Department of Anatomy and Neurobiology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, United States
| | - Utsav Gyawali
- Department of Anatomy and Neurobiology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, United States
- Program in Neuroscience, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, United States
| | - Donna J. Calu
- Department of Anatomy and Neurobiology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, United States
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29
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Everett NA, Carey HA, Cornish JL, Baracz SJ. Sign tracking predicts cue-induced but not drug-primed reinstatement to methamphetamine seeking in rats: Effects of oxytocin treatment. J Psychopharmacol 2020; 34:1271-1279. [PMID: 33081558 DOI: 10.1177/0269881120954052] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/13/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND The incentive sensitisation theory of addiction posits that drug-associated stimuli become imbued with incentive motivational properties, driving pathological drug seeking. However, pre-existing variability in the incentive salience to non-drug reward cues ('sign trackers' (STs); 'goal trackers' (GTs)) is also predictive of the desire for and relapse to cocaine and opioids. Here, we asked whether variation in propensity to attribute incentive salience to a food cue is predictive of reinstatement to the highly addictive psychostimulant methamphetamine (METH), and whether treatment with the promising anti-addiction therapy oxytocin differentially reduces METH behaviour between STs and GTs. METHODS Rats were trained to associate a Pavlovian cue with delivery of a sucrose pellet over 8 days. They then received jugular vein catheters for intravenous METH self-administration, followed by behavioural extinction, and cue-induced and METH-primed reinstatement to METH-seeking behaviours. Oxytocin was administered prior to self-administration and reinstatement tests. RESULTS Despite the self-administration of similar amounts of METH, STs reinstated more to METH cues than did GTs, yet METH-priming reinstated STs and GTs similarly. Furthermore, oxytocin attenuated cue-induced reinstatement more so in STs than in GTs, and reduced METH-primed reinstatement to a greater extent in the top quartile of reinstaters, indicating that oxytocin treatment may be most effective for those at highest risk of addiction. CONCLUSIONS This pre-existing bias towards reward cues presents a possible tool to screen for METH addiction susceptibility and may be useful for understanding the neurobiology of addiction and for pharmacotherapeutic discovery.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Harry A Carey
- Department of Psychology, Macquarie University, North Ryde, Australia
| | - Jennifer L Cornish
- Centre for Emotional Health, Department of Psychology, Macquarie University, North Ryde, Australia
| | - Sarah J Baracz
- Department of Psychology, Macquarie University, North Ryde, Australia.,Centre for Emotional Health, Department of Psychology, Macquarie University, North Ryde, Australia
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30
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Collins AL, Saunders BT. Heterogeneity in striatal dopamine circuits: Form and function in dynamic reward seeking. J Neurosci Res 2020; 98:1046-1069. [PMID: 32056298 PMCID: PMC7183907 DOI: 10.1002/jnr.24587] [Citation(s) in RCA: 46] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/30/2019] [Revised: 01/08/2020] [Accepted: 01/16/2020] [Indexed: 01/03/2023]
Abstract
The striatal dopamine system has long been studied in the context of reward learning, motivation, and movement. Given the prominent role dopamine plays in a variety of adaptive behavioral states, as well as diseases like addiction, it is essential to understand the full complexity of dopamine neurons and the striatal systems they target. A growing number of studies are uncovering details of the heterogeneity in dopamine neuron subpopulations. Here, we review that work to synthesize current understanding of dopamine system heterogeneity across three levels, anatomical organization, functions in behavior, and modes of action, wherein we focus on signaling profiles and local mechanisms for modulation of dopamine release. Together, these studies reveal new and emerging dimensions of the striatal dopamine system, informing its contribution to dynamic motivational and decision-making processes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anne L. Collins
- University of Minnesota, Department of Neuroscience, Medical Discovery Team on Addiction, Minneapolis, MN 55455
| | - Benjamin T. Saunders
- University of Minnesota, Department of Neuroscience, Medical Discovery Team on Addiction, Minneapolis, MN 55455
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31
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Kypriotakis G, Cinciripini PM, Versace F. Modeling neuroaffective biomarkers of drug addiction: A Bayesian nonparametric approach using dirichlet process mixtures. J Neurosci Methods 2020; 341:108753. [PMID: 32428623 DOI: 10.1016/j.jneumeth.2020.108753] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/16/2019] [Revised: 02/25/2020] [Accepted: 04/26/2020] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND The properties of neurophysiological processes related to addiction have received much attention in the literature. However, empirical evidence of meaningful and useful characterization of these processes is limited. Recent studies have found that electrophysiological responses to emotional and drug-related cues can be used to create profiles that reliably predict smoking relapse. NEW METHOD This paper evaluates the validity of classifying electrophysiological responses into distinct profiles using a Bayesian dirichlet process mixture (DPM) model. The DPM is a Bayesian nonparametric (BNP) method to modeling unknown number of profiles characterized by uncertainty in cluster membership and in cluster number. RESULTS The DPM model confirmed previously identified neuroaffective reactivity profiles, but also revealed a finer level of granularity in the clustering. Specifically, in addition to the two clusters previously identified in the literature, the BNP methods identified a cluster of individuals showing similar responses to smoking, pleasant, neutral and unpleasant cues. COMPARISON WITH EXISTING METHODS BNP models provide an alternative to the k-mean clustering approach to modeling EEG-based neuroaffective profiles. Unlike k-means clustering, BNP models compute the probability that a subject belongs to a cluster while taking into consideration uncertainty in the number of clusters. CONCLUSIONS Our results confirm the reliability of the two clusters previously identified in these data, but also provide new insights by revealing a cluster that presented similar responses to stimuli with different contents. This finding may be related to the uncertainty in classification or overlapping brain-reactivity profiles.
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Affiliation(s)
- George Kypriotakis
- Department of Behavioral Science, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, United States.
| | - Paul M Cinciripini
- Department of Behavioral Science, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, United States
| | - Francesco Versace
- Department of Behavioral Science, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, United States
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32
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Anselme P, Robinson MJF. From sign-tracking to attentional bias: Implications for gambling and substance use disorders. Prog Neuropsychopharmacol Biol Psychiatry 2020; 99:109861. [PMID: 31931091 DOI: 10.1016/j.pnpbp.2020.109861] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/12/2019] [Revised: 01/07/2020] [Accepted: 01/08/2020] [Indexed: 01/11/2023]
Abstract
Sign-tracking behavior in Pavlovian autoshaping is known to be a relevant index of the incentive salience attributed to reward-related cues. Evidence has accumulated to suggest that animals that exhibit a sign-tracker phenotype are especially vulnerable to addiction and relapse due to their proneness to attribute incentive salience to drug cues, and their relatively weak cognitive and attentional control over their behavior. Interestingly, sign-tracking is also influenced by reward uncertainty in a way that may promote gambling disorder. Research indicates that reward uncertainty sensitizes sign-tracking responses and favors the development of a sign-tracker phenotype, compatible with the conditioned attractiveness of lights and sounds in casinos for problem gamblers. The study of attentional biases in humans (an effect akin to sign-tracking in animals) leads to similar observations, notably that the propensity to develop attraction for conditioned stimuli (CSs) is predictive of addictive behavior. Here we review the literature on drug addiction and gambling disorder, highlighting the similarities between studies of sign-tracking and attentional biases.
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33
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Colaizzi JM, Flagel SB, Joyner MA, Gearhardt AN, Stewart JL, Paulus MP. Mapping sign-tracking and goal-tracking onto human behaviors. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2020; 111:84-94. [PMID: 31972203 PMCID: PMC8087151 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2020.01.018] [Citation(s) in RCA: 48] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/31/2019] [Revised: 01/16/2020] [Accepted: 01/18/2020] [Indexed: 12/17/2022]
Abstract
As evidenced through classic Pavlovian learning mechanisms, environmental cues can become incentivized and influence behavior. These stimulus-outcome associations are relevant in everyday life but may be particularly important for the development of impulse control disorders including addiction. Rodent studies have elucidated specific learning profiles termed 'sign-tracking' and 'goal-tracking' which map onto individual differences in impulsivity and other behaviors associated with impulse control disorders' etiology, course, and relapse. Whereas goal-trackers are biased toward the outcome, sign-trackers fixate on features that are associated with but not necessary for achieving an outcome; a pattern of behavior that often leads to escalation of reward-seeking that can be maladaptive. The vast majority of the sign- and goal-tracking research has been conducted using rodent models and very few have bridged this concept into the domain of human behavior. In this review, we discuss the attributes of sign- and goal-tracking profiles, how these are manifested neurobiologically, and how these distinct learning styles could be an important tool for clinical interventions in human addiction.
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Affiliation(s)
- Janna M Colaizzi
- Laureate Institute for Brain Research, 6655 S Yale Ave, Tulsa, OK, USA.
| | - Shelly B Flagel
- University of Michigan Molecular and Behavioral Neuroscience Institute, 205 Zina Pitcher Pl, Ann Arbor, MI, 48109, USA
| | - Michelle A Joyner
- University of Michigan, Department of Psychology, 530 Church St, Ann Arbor, MI, 48109, USA
| | - Ashley N Gearhardt
- University of Michigan, Department of Psychology, 530 Church St, Ann Arbor, MI, 48109, USA
| | | | - Martin P Paulus
- Laureate Institute for Brain Research, 6655 S Yale Ave, Tulsa, OK, USA
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34
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Theben A, Gerards M, Folkvord F. The Effect of Packaging Color and Health Claims on Product Attitude and Buying Intention. Int J Environ Res Public Health 2020; 17:ijerph17061991. [PMID: 32197334 PMCID: PMC7142868 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph17061991] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/09/2020] [Revised: 03/14/2020] [Accepted: 03/15/2020] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Packaging design is an important factor when consumers look out for healthy food. The study tested for effects of packaging color and health claims of a fictional fruit yoghurt package on attitude towards the product and subsequently, consumer’s buying intention, using a 2 × 2 between-subjects experimental design. We also tested whether interest in healthy food is a moderating factor. We found no evidence to support that visual cues (color) and textual cues (health-related advertising claims) are effective in influencing consumer attitude towards the product. Consumers did not show a more positive attitude towards products presented in low-arousal packaging colors (green/blue) compared to high arousal packaging colors (red/yellow). Also, the claim “palatability” did not result in a more positive attitude towards the product than the claim “healthy”. A moderating role of interest in healthy food could not be confirmed. The results confirmed, however, a significant relation of attitude towards the product and buying intention. Thus, buying intention could be explained mostly by whether consumers had a positive or negative attitude towards the product, which confirms that people’s attitudes are powerful predictors of buying decisions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexandra Theben
- Doctoral Programme Information and Knowledge Society, Universitat Oberta de Catalunya, 08035 Barcelona, Spain
- Correspondence: ; Tel.: +34-647-808-602
| | - Melissa Gerards
- Behavioral Science Institute, Radboud University, 6500 HE Nijmegen, The Netherlands;
| | - Frans Folkvord
- Tilburg School of Humanities and Digital Sciences, 5037 AB Tilburg, The Netherlands;
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35
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Amaya KA, Stott JJ, Smith KS. Sign-tracking behavior is sensitive to outcome devaluation in a devaluation context-dependent manner: implications for analyzing habitual behavior. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2020; 27:136-149. [PMID: 32179656 PMCID: PMC7079568 DOI: 10.1101/lm.051144.119] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/30/2019] [Accepted: 12/31/2019] [Indexed: 01/23/2023]
Abstract
Motivationally attractive cues can draw in behavior in a phenomenon termed incentive salience. Incentive cue attraction is an important model for animal models of drug seeking and relapse. One question of interest is the extent to which the pursuit of motivationally attractive cues is related to the value of the paired outcome or can become unrelated and habitual. We studied this question using a sign-tracking (ST) paradigm in rats, in which a lever stimulus preceding food reward comes to elicit conditioned lever-interaction behavior. We asked whether reinforcer devaluation by means of conditioned taste aversion, a classic test of habitual behavior, can modify ST to incentive cues, and whether this depends upon the manner in which reinforcer devaluation takes place. In contrast to several recent reports, we conclude that ST is indeed sensitive to reinforcer devaluation. However, this effect depends critically upon the congruence between the context in which taste aversion is learned and the context in which it is tested. When the taste aversion successfully transfers to the testing context, outcome value strongly influences ST behavior, both when the outcome is withheld (in extinction) and when animals can learn from outcome feedback (reacquisition). When taste aversion does not transfer to the testing context, ST remains high. In total, the extent to which ST persists after outcome devaluation is closely related to the extent to which that outcome is truly devalued in the task context. We believe this effect of context on devaluation can reconcile contradictory findings about the flexibility/inflexibility of ST. We discuss this literature and relate our findings to the study of habits generally.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kenneth A Amaya
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Dartmouth College, Hanover, New Hampshire 03755, USA
| | - Jeffrey J Stott
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Dartmouth College, Hanover, New Hampshire 03755, USA
| | - Kyle S Smith
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Dartmouth College, Hanover, New Hampshire 03755, USA
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36
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Keefer SE, Bacharach SZ, Kochli DE, Chabot JM, Calu DJ. Effects of Limited and Extended Pavlovian Training on Devaluation Sensitivity of Sign- and Goal-Tracking Rats. Front Behav Neurosci 2020; 14:3. [PMID: 32116587 PMCID: PMC7010919 DOI: 10.3389/fnbeh.2020.00003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/08/2019] [Accepted: 01/07/2020] [Indexed: 12/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Individual differences in Pavlovian approach predict differences in devaluation sensitivity. Recent studies indicate goal-tracking (GT) rats are sensitive to outcome devaluation while sign-tracking (ST) rats are not. With extended training in Pavlovian lever autoshaping (PLA), GT rats display more lever-directed behavior, typical of ST rats, suggesting they may become insensitive to devaluation with more Pavlovian training experience. Here, we use a within-subject satiety-induced outcome devaluation procedure to test devaluation sensitivity after limited and extended PLA training in GT and ST rats. We trained rats in PLA to determine GT and ST groups. Then, we sated rats on either the training pellets (devalued condition) or homecage chow (valued condition) prior to brief non-reinforced test sessions after limited (sessions 5/6) and extended (sessions 17/18) PLA training. GT rats decreased conditioned responding under devalued relative to valued conditions after both limited and extended training, demonstrating they are sensitive to satiety devaluation regardless of the amount of PLA training. While ST rats were insensitive to satiety devaluation after limited training, their lever directed behavior became devaluation sensitive after extended training. To determine whether sign-tracking rats also displayed sensitivity to illness-induced outcome devaluation after extended training, we trained a separate cohort of rats in extended PLA and devalued the outcome with lithium chloride injections after pellet consumption in the homecage. ST rats failed to decrease conditioned responding after illness-induced outcome devaluation, while Non-ST rats (GT and intermediates) were sensitive to illness-induced outcome devaluation after extended training. Together, our results confirm devaluation sensitivity is stable in GT rats across training and devaluation approaches. Extended training unmasks devaluation sensitivity in ST rats after satiety, but not illness-induced devaluation, suggesting ST rats respond appropriately by decreasing responding to cues during state-dependent but not inference-based devaluation. The differences in behavioral flexibility across tracking groups and devaluation paradigms have translational relevance for the understanding state- vs. inference-based reward devaluation as it pertains to drug addiction vulnerability.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sara E Keefer
- Department of Anatomy and Neurobiology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, United States
| | - Sam Z Bacharach
- Department of Anatomy and Neurobiology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, United States.,Program in Neuroscience, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, United States
| | - Daniel E Kochli
- Department of Anatomy and Neurobiology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, United States
| | - Jules M Chabot
- Neuroscience and Behavior Program, Wesleyan University, Middletown, CT, United States
| | - Donna J Calu
- Department of Anatomy and Neurobiology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, United States.,Program in Neuroscience, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, United States
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37
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Watson P, Pearson D, Most SB, Theeuwes J, Wiers RW, Le Pelley ME. Attentional capture by Pavlovian reward-signalling distractors in visual search persists when rewards are removed. PLoS One 2019; 14:e0226284. [PMID: 31830126 PMCID: PMC6907814 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0226284] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/08/2019] [Accepted: 11/24/2019] [Indexed: 12/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Existing research indicates that learning about the Pavlovian ‘signal value’ of stimuli can induce attentional biases: findings suggest that our attentional system prioritises detection of stimuli that have previously signalled availability of high reward. These findings potentially provide a human analogue of sign-tracking behaviour previously reported in studies of non-human animals. Here we examine a visual search task that has been developed to demonstrate the Pavlovian influence of reward on attention, in which the critical reward-signalling stimuli are never explicit targets of search. This procedure has previously yielded robust effects of reward on attention; however it remains unclear whether this pattern reflects a persistent and automatic bias in attentional capture based on prior experience of stimulus–reward pairings, or whether it results from participants strategically attending to reward-signalling distractors because they provide useful information about reward magnitude. To investigate this issue, in the current study participants initially completed a rewarded visual search task, in which colours of distractor stimuli signalled availability of high or low reward. Participants then completed a test phase in which rewards were no longer available, such that distractor colours no longer provided useful information on reward availability. Performance during the initial rewarded phase was impaired by the presence of a distractor signalling availability of high relative to low reward. Crucially, the magnitude of this reward-related distraction effect did not reduce in the subsequent unrewarded test phase. This suggests that participants’ experience of differences in reward value signalled by distractor stimuli in this task can induce persistent biases in the extent to which these stimuli involuntarily capture attention, even when they are entirely task-irrelevant.
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Affiliation(s)
- Poppy Watson
- School of Psychology, UNSW, Sydney, Australia
- * E-mail:
| | | | | | - Jan Theeuwes
- Department of Experimental and Applied Psychology, Vrije Universiteit, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Reinout W. Wiers
- Department of Psychology, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
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38
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Cofresí RU, Bartholow BD, Piasecki TM. Evidence for incentive salience sensitization as a pathway to alcohol use disorder. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2019; 107:897-926. [PMID: 31672617 PMCID: PMC6878895 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2019.10.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/21/2019] [Revised: 10/14/2019] [Accepted: 10/15/2019] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
The incentive salience sensitization (ISS) theory of addiction holds that addictive behavior stems from the ability of drugs to progressively sensitize the brain circuitry that mediates attribution of incentive salience (IS) to reward-predictive cues and its behavioral manifestations. In this article, we establish the plausibility of ISS as an etiological pathway to alcohol use disorder (AUD). We provide a comprehensive and critical review of evidence for: (1) the ability of alcohol to sensitize the brain circuitry of IS attribution and expression; and (2) attribution of IS to alcohol-predictive cues and its sensitization in humans and non-human animals. We point out gaps in the literature and how these might be addressed. We also highlight how individuals with different alcohol subjective response phenotypes may differ in susceptibility to ISS as a pathway to AUD. Finally, we discuss important implications of this neuropsychological mechanism in AUD for psychological and pharmacological interventions attempting to attenuate alcohol craving and cue reactivity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Roberto U Cofresí
- University of Missouri, Department of Psychological Sciences, Columbia, MO 65211, United States.
| | - Bruce D Bartholow
- University of Missouri, Department of Psychological Sciences, Columbia, MO 65211, United States
| | - Thomas M Piasecki
- University of Missouri, Department of Psychological Sciences, Columbia, MO 65211, United States
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39
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Ahrens AM, Ahmed OJ. Neural circuits linking sleep and addiction: Animal models to understand why select individuals are more vulnerable to substance use disorders after sleep deprivation. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2019; 108:435-444. [PMID: 31756346 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2019.11.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/28/2019] [Revised: 10/26/2019] [Accepted: 11/12/2019] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
Individuals differ widely in their drug-craving behaviors. One reason for these differences involves sleep. Sleep disturbances lead to an increased risk of substance use disorders and relapse in only some individuals. While animal studies have examined the impact of sleep on reward circuitry, few have addressed the role of individual differences in the effects of altered sleep. There does, however, exist a rodent model of individual differences in reward-seeking behavior: the sign/goal-tracker model of Pavlovian conditioned approach. In this model, only some rats show the key behavioral traits associated with addiction, including impulsivity and poor attentional control, making this an ideal model system to examine individually distinct sleep-reward interactions. Here, we describe how the limbic neural circuits responsible for individual differences in incentive motivation overlap with those involved in sleep-wake regulation, and how this model can elucidate the common underlying mechanisms. Consideration of individual differences in preclinical models would improve our understanding of how sleep interacts with motivational systems, and why sleep deprivation contributes to addiction in only select individuals.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Omar J Ahmed
- Dept. of Psychology, United States; Neuroscience Graduate Program, United States; Michigan Center for Integrative Research in Critical Care, United States; Kresge Hearing Research Institute, United States; Dept. of Biomedical Engineering, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, 48109, United States.
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Schad DJ, Rapp MA, Garbusow M, Nebe S, Sebold M, Obst E, Sommer C, Deserno L, Rabovsky M, Friedel E, Romanczuk-seiferth N, Wittchen H, Zimmermann US, Walter H, Sterzer P, Smolka MN, Schlagenhauf F, Heinz A, Dayan P, Huys QJM. Dissociating neural learning signals in human sign- and goal-trackers. Nat Hum Behav 2020; 4:201-14. [DOI: 10.1038/s41562-019-0765-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/20/2017] [Accepted: 09/25/2019] [Indexed: 01/20/2023]
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41
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Adams RC, Sedgmond J, Maizey L, Chambers CD, Lawrence NS. Food Addiction: Implications for the Diagnosis and Treatment of Overeating. Nutrients 2019; 11:E2086. [PMID: 31487791 DOI: 10.3390/nu11092086] [Citation(s) in RCA: 38] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/15/2019] [Revised: 08/14/2019] [Accepted: 08/21/2019] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
With the obesity epidemic being largely attributed to overeating, much research has been aimed at understanding the psychological causes of overeating and using this knowledge to develop targeted interventions. Here, we review this literature under a model of food addiction and present evidence according to the fifth edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM-5) criteria for substance use disorders. We review several innovative treatments related to a food addiction model ranging from cognitive intervention tasks to neuromodulation techniques. We conclude that there is evidence to suggest that, for some individuals, food can induce addictive-type behaviours similar to those seen with other addictive substances. However, with several DSM-5 criteria having limited application to overeating, the term ‘food addiction’ is likely to apply only in a minority of cases. Nevertheless, research investigating the underlying psychological causes of overeating within the context of food addiction has led to some novel and potentially effective interventions. Understanding the similarities and differences between the addictive characteristics of food and illicit substances should prove fruitful in further developing these interventions.
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42
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Langdon AJ, Hathaway BA, Zorowitz S, Harris CBW, Winstanley CA. Relative insensitivity to time-out punishments induced by win-paired cues in a rat gambling task. Psychopharmacology (Berl) 2019; 236:2543-2556. [PMID: 31256220 PMCID: PMC7388589 DOI: 10.1007/s00213-019-05308-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/22/2019] [Accepted: 06/18/2019] [Indexed: 10/26/2022]
Abstract
RATIONALE Pairing rewarding outcomes with audiovisual cues in simulated gambling games increases risky choice in both humans and rats. However, the cognitive mechanism through which this sensory enhancement biases decision-making is unknown. OBJECTIVES To assess the computational mechanisms that promote risky choice during gambling, we applied a series of reinforcement learning models to a large dataset of choices acquired from rats as they each performed one of two variants of a rat gambling task (rGT), in which rewards on "win" trials were delivered either with or without salient audiovisual cues. METHODS We used a sampling technique based on Markov chain Monte Carlo to obtain posterior estimates of model parameters for a series of RL models of increasing complexity, in order to assess the relative contribution of learning about positive and negative outcomes to the latent valuation of each choice option on the cued and uncued rGT. RESULTS Rats which develop a preference for the risky options on the rGT substantially down-weight the equivalent cost of the time-out punishments during these tasks. For each model tested, the reduction in learning from the negative time-outs correlated with the degree of risk preference in individual rats. We found no apparent relationship between risk preference and the parameters that govern learning from the positive rewards. CONCLUSIONS The emergence of risk-preferring choice on the rGT derives from a relative insensitivity to the cost of the time-out punishments, as opposed to a relative hypersensitivity to rewards. This hyposensitivity to punishment is more likely to be induced in individual rats by the addition of salient audiovisual cues to rewards delivered on win trials.
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Affiliation(s)
- Angela J Langdon
- Princeton Neuroscience Institute and Department of Psychology, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, 08544, USA.
| | - Brett A Hathaway
- Department of Psychology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
| | - Samuel Zorowitz
- Princeton Neuroscience Institute and Department of Psychology, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, 08544, USA
| | - Cailean B W Harris
- Department of Psychology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
| | - Catharine A Winstanley
- Princeton Neuroscience Institute and Department of Psychology, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, 08544, USA.
- Department of Psychology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada.
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43
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Versace F, Frank DW, Stevens EM, Deweese MM, Guindani M, Schembre SM. The reality of "food porn": Larger brain responses to food-related cues than to erotic images predict cue-induced eating. Psychophysiology 2019; 56:e13309. [PMID: 30556253 PMCID: PMC6446735 DOI: 10.1111/psyp.13309] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/23/2017] [Revised: 11/02/2018] [Accepted: 11/05/2018] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
While some individuals can defy the lure of temptation, many others find appetizing food irresistible. The goal of this study was to investigate the neuropsychological mechanisms that increase individuals' vulnerability to cue-induced eating. Using ERPs, a direct measure of brain activity, we showed that individuals with larger late positive potentials in response to food-related cues than to erotic images are more susceptible to cue-induced eating and, in the presence of a palatable food option, eat more than twice as much as individuals with the opposite brain reactivity profile. By highlighting the presence of individual brain reactivity profiles associated with susceptibility to cue-induced eating, these findings contribute to the understanding of the neurobiological basis of vulnerability to obesity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Francesco Versace
- Department of Behavioral ScienceThe University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer CenterHoustonTexas
| | - David W. Frank
- Department of Behavioral ScienceThe University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer CenterHoustonTexas
| | - Elise M. Stevens
- Oklahoma Tobacco Research CenterThe University of Oklahoma Health Sciences CenterOklahoma CityOklahoma
| | - Menton M. Deweese
- Department of Teaching and LearningVanderbilt UniversityNashvilleTennessee
| | - Michele Guindani
- Department of StatisticsThe University of California, IrvineIrvineCalifornia
| | - Susan M. Schembre
- Department of Family and Community MedicineUniversity of Arizona, College of Medicine–TucsonTucsonArizona
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Kube J, Mathar D, Horstmann A, Kotz SA, Villringer A, Neumann J. Altered monetary loss processing and reinforcement-based learning in individuals with obesity. Brain Imaging Behav 2019; 12:1431-1449. [PMID: 29285721 PMCID: PMC6290732 DOI: 10.1007/s11682-017-9786-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/24/2023]
Abstract
Individuals with obesity are often characterized by alterations in reward processing. This may affect how new information is used to update stimulus values during reinforcement-based learning. Here, we investigated obesity-related changes in non-food reinforcement processing, their impact on learning performance as well as the neural underpinnings of reinforcement-based learning in obesity. Nineteen individuals with obesity (BMI > = 30 kg/m2, 10 female) and 23 lean control participants (BMI 18.5–24.9 kg/m2, 11 female) performed a probabilistic learning task during functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), in which they learned to choose between advantageous and disadvantageous choice options in separate monetary gain, loss, and neutral conditions. During learning individuals with obesity made a significantly lower number of correct choices and accumulated a significantly lower overall monetary outcome than lean control participants. FMRI analyses revealed aberrant medial prefrontal cortex responses to monetary losses in individuals with obesity. There were no significant group differences in the regional representation of prediction errors. However, we found evidence for increased functional connectivity between the ventral striatum and insula in individuals with obesity. The present results suggest that obesity is associated with aberrant value representations for monetary losses, alterations in functional connectivity during the processing of learning outcomes, as well as a decresased reinforcement-based learning performance. This may affect how new information is incorporated to adjust dysfunctional behavior and could be a factor contributing to the maintenance of dysfunctional eating behavior in obesity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jana Kube
- Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Stephanstraße 1a, 04103, Leipzig, Germany. .,IFB Adiposity Diseases, Leipzig University Medical Center, Leipzig, Germany. .,Faculty 5 - Business, Law and Social Sciences, Brandenburg University of Technology Cottbus-Senftenberg, Cottbus, Germany.
| | - David Mathar
- Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Stephanstraße 1a, 04103, Leipzig, Germany.,Department of Psychology, University of Cologne, Cologne, Germany
| | - Annette Horstmann
- Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Stephanstraße 1a, 04103, Leipzig, Germany.,IFB Adiposity Diseases, Leipzig University Medical Center, Leipzig, Germany
| | - Sonja A Kotz
- Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Stephanstraße 1a, 04103, Leipzig, Germany.,Department of Neuropsychology and Psychopharmacology, Faculty of Psychology and Neuroscience, Maastricht University, Maastricht, Netherlands
| | - Arno Villringer
- Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Stephanstraße 1a, 04103, Leipzig, Germany.,IFB Adiposity Diseases, Leipzig University Medical Center, Leipzig, Germany.,Clinic of Cognitive Neurology, University Hospital Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany.,Mind & Brain Institute, Berlin School of Mind and Brain, Humboldt-University, Berlin, Germany
| | - Jane Neumann
- Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Stephanstraße 1a, 04103, Leipzig, Germany.,IFB Adiposity Diseases, Leipzig University Medical Center, Leipzig, Germany.,Department of Medical Engineering and Biotechnology, University of Applied Sciences, Jena, Germany
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45
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Gillis ZS, Morrison SE. Sign Tracking and Goal Tracking Are Characterized by Distinct Patterns of Nucleus Accumbens Activity. eNeuro 2019; 6:ENEURO. [PMID: 30886890 DOI: 10.1523/ENEURO.0414-18.2019] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/26/2018] [Revised: 02/11/2019] [Accepted: 02/18/2019] [Indexed: 01/17/2023] Open
Abstract
During Pavlovian conditioning, if a cue (e.g., lever extension) predicts reward delivery in a different location (e.g., a food magazine), some individuals will come to approach and interact with the cue, a behavior known as sign tracking (ST), and others will approach the site of reward, a behavior known as goal tracking (GT). In rats, the acquisition of ST versus GT behavior is associated with distinct profiles of dopamine release in the nucleus accumbens (NAc), but it is unknown whether it is associated with different patterns of accumbens neural activity. Therefore, we recorded from individual neurons in the NAc core during the acquisition, maintenance, and extinction of ST and GT behavior. Even though NAc dopamine is specifically important for the acquisition and expression of ST, we found that cue-evoked excitatory responses encode the vigor of both ST and GT behavior. In contrast, among sign trackers only, there was a prominent decrease in reward-related activity over the course of training, which may reflect the decreasing reward prediction error encoded by phasic dopamine. Finally, both behavior and cue-evoked activity were relatively resistant to extinction in sign trackers, as compared with goal trackers, although a subset of neurons in both groups retained their cue-evoked responses. Overall, the results point to the convergence of multiple forms of reward learning in the NAc.
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Vainik U, García-García I, Dagher A. Uncontrolled eating: a unifying heritable trait linked with obesity, overeating, personality and the brain. Eur J Neurosci 2019; 50:2430-2445. [PMID: 30667547 DOI: 10.1111/ejn.14352] [Citation(s) in RCA: 103] [Impact Index Per Article: 20.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/17/2018] [Revised: 12/21/2018] [Accepted: 01/08/2019] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
Abstract
Many eating-related psychological constructs have been proposed to explain obesity and overeating. However, these constructs, including food addiction, disinhibition, hedonic hunger, emotional eating, binge eating and the like all have similar definitions, emphasizing loss of control over intake. As questionnaires measuring the constructs correlate strongly (r > 0.5) with each other, we propose that these constructs should be reconsidered to be part of a single broad phenotype: uncontrolled eating. Such an approach enables reviewing and meta-analysing evidence obtained with each individual questionnaire. Here, we describe robust associations between uncontrolled eating, body mass index (BMI), food intake, personality traits and brain systems. Reviewing cross-sectional and longitudinal data, we show that uncontrolled eating is phenotypically and genetically intertwined with BMI and food intake. We also review evidence on how three psychological constructs are linked with uncontrolled eating: lower cognitive control, higher negative affect and a curvilinear association with reward sensitivity. Uncontrolled eating mediates all three constructs' associations with BMI and food intake. Finally, we review and meta-analyse brain systems possibly subserving uncontrolled eating: namely, (i) the dopamine mesolimbic circuit associated with reward sensitivity, (ii) frontal cognitive networks sustaining dietary self-control and (iii) the hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal axis, amygdala and hippocampus supporting stress reactivity. While there are limits to the explanatory and predictive power of the uncontrolled eating phenotype, we conclude that treating different eating-related constructs as a single concept, uncontrolled eating, enables drawing robust conclusions on the relationship between food intake and BMI, psychological variables and brain structure and function.
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Affiliation(s)
- Uku Vainik
- Montreal Neurological Institute, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada.,Institute of Psychology, University of Tartu, Tartu, Estonia
| | | | - Alain Dagher
- Montreal Neurological Institute, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
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48
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Everitt BJ, Giuliano C, Belin D. Addictive behaviour in experimental animals: prospects for translation. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2019; 373:rstb.2017.0027. [PMID: 29352026 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2017.0027] [Citation(s) in RCA: 54] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 08/30/2017] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Since the introduction of intravenous drug self-administration methodology over 50 years ago, experimental investigation of addictive behaviour has delivered an enormous body of data on the neural, psychological and molecular mechanisms of drug reward and reinforcement and the neuroadaptations to chronic use. Whether or not these behavioural and molecular studies are viewed as modelling the underpinnings of addiction in humans, the discussion presented here highlights two areas-the impact of drug-associated conditioned stimuli-or drug cues-on drug seeking and relapse, and compulsive cocaine seeking. The degree to which these findings translate to the clinical state of addiction is considered in terms of the underlying neural circuitry and also the ways in which this understanding has helped develop new treatments for addiction. The psychological and neural mechanisms underlying drug memory reconsolidation and extinction established in animal experiments show particular promise in delivering new treatments for relapse prevention to the clinic.This article is part of a discussion meeting issue 'Of mice and mental health: facilitating dialogue between basic and clinical neuroscientists'.
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Affiliation(s)
- Barry J Everitt
- Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience Institute, Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Downing Street, Cambridge CB2 3EB, UK
| | - Chiara Giuliano
- Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience Institute, Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Downing Street, Cambridge CB2 3EB, UK
| | - David Belin
- Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience Institute, Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Downing Street, Cambridge CB2 3EB, UK
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Cinotti F, Marchand AR, Roesch MR, Girard B, Khamassi M. Impacts of inter-trial interval duration on a computational model of sign-tracking vs. goal-tracking behaviour. Psychopharmacology (Berl) 2019; 236:2373-88. [PMID: 31367850 DOI: 10.1007/s00213-019-05323-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/20/2019] [Accepted: 07/01/2019] [Indexed: 01/15/2023]
Abstract
In the context of Pavlovian conditioning, two types of behaviour may emerge within the population (Flagel et al. Nature, 469(7328): 53-57, 2011). Animals may choose to engage either with the conditioned stimulus (CS), a behaviour known as sign-tracking (ST) which is sensitive to dopamine inhibition for its acquisition, or with the food cup in which the reward or unconditioned stimulus (US) will eventually be delivered, a behaviour known as goal-tracking (GT) which is dependent on dopamine for its expression only. Previous work by Lesaint et al. (PLoS Comput Biol, 10(2), 2014) offered a computational explanation for these phenomena and led to the prediction that varying the duration of the inter-trial interval (ITI) would change the relative ST-GT proportion in the population as well as phasic dopamine responses. A recent study verified this prediction, but also found a rich variance of ST and GT behaviours within the trial which goes beyond the original computational model. In this paper, we provide a computational perspective on these novel results.
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50
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Hynes TJ, Thomas CS, Zumbusch AS, Samson A, Petriman I, Mrdja U, Orr A, Cutts E, Ruzindana BG, Hazari A, Zjadewicz M, Lovic V. Early life adversity potentiates expression of addiction-related traits. Prog Neuropsychopharmacol Biol Psychiatry 2018; 87:56-67. [PMID: 28899646 DOI: 10.1016/j.pnpbp.2017.09.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/04/2017] [Revised: 08/21/2017] [Accepted: 09/08/2017] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
Abstract
Many individuals sporadically and circumstantially sample addictive drugs, yet few become addicted. The individual vulnerabilities underlying the development of addiction are not well understood. Correlational findings show that early life adversity is associated with a greater propensity to develop drug addiction. However, the mechanisms by which early life adversity increases addiction vulnerability are unknown. Separate lines of research have found that several traits are associated with addiction. Here, we examined the effects of early life adversity on addiction-related traits in adulthood. We weaned male and female Sprague-Dawley rats (postnatal day - PND21) and randomly assigned them to either a non-adversity group (N-ADV) or an adversity group (ADV). ADV rats experienced adversity from PND 21-35, they were: a) singly housed, b) food restricted for 12h/day, c) subjected to forced-swim sessions, and d) restrained and exposed to predator odour (1h). As adults, rats were tested for impulsivity, anxiety-like behaviour, novelty preference, and attribution of incentive salience to a reward cue. ADV rats showed enhanced novelty preference and attributed greater incentive value to a reward cue. Compared to N-ADV rats, a greater proportion of ADV rats expressed multiple addiction risk traits. Furthermore, fewer ADV rats expressed no addiction risk traits. This effect was most evident in female ADV rats.
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