Effects of nicotine on visuo-spatial selective attention as indexed by event-related potentials.
Nicotine has been shown to specifically reduce reaction times to invalidly cued targets in spatial cueing paradigms. In two experiments, we used event-related potentials to test whether the facilitative effect of nicotine upon the detection of invalidly cued targets is due to a modulation of perceptual processing, as indexed by early attention-related event-related potential components. Furthermore, we assessed whether the effect of nicotine on such unattended stimuli depends upon the use of exogenous or endogenous cues. In both experiments, the electroencephalogram was recorded while non-smokers completed discrimination tasks in Posner-type paradigms after chewing a nicotine polacrilex gum (Nicorette 2 mg) in one session and a placebo gum in another session. Nicotine reduced reaction times to invalidly cued targets when cueing was endogenous. In contrast, no differential effect of nicotine on reaction times was observed when exogenous cues were used. Electrophysiologically, we found a similar attentional modulation of the P1 and N1 components under placebo and nicotine but a differential modulation of later event-related potential components at a frontocentral site. The lack of a drug-dependent modulation of P1 and N1 in the presence of a behavioral effect suggests that the effect of nicotine in endogenous visuo-spatial cueing tasks is not due to an alteration of perceptual processes. Rather, the differential modulation of frontocentral event-related potentials suggests that nicotine acts at later stages of target processing.
Meinke
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Institute of Medicine, Research Centre Jülich, 52425 Jülich, Germany. Anja.Meinke@nat.uni-magedeburg.de
Thiel
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CM
Fink
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D000328:Adult; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D001288:Attention / Q000187:drug effects*; D001931:Brain Mapping; D000697:Central Nervous System Stimulants / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D003463:Cues; D004569:Electroencephalography / Q000379:methods; D005074:Evoked Potentials, Visual / Q000187:drug effects*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009538:Nicotine / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000031:analogs & derivatives*; D010775:Photic Stimulation / Q000379:methods; D011109:Polymethacrylic Acids / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D011145:Polyvinyls / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D011930:Reaction Time / Q000187:drug effects; D013028:Space Perception / Q000187:drug effects*; D013997:Time Factors; D061485:Tobacco Use Cessation Devices; D014793:Visual Cortex / Q000187:drug effects
D000697:Central Nervous System Stimulants; D011109:Polymethacrylic Acids; D011145:Polyvinyls; D009538:Nicotine