title: The reward system and maternal behavior in an animal model of depression: a microdialysis study.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Flinders sensitive line (FSL) rats, an animal model of depression, display a different pattern of maternal behavior compared to Sprague-Dawley (SD) controls. In this study, we examined the rewarding value of mother-infant interaction for FSL dams.
  
  
  METHODS
  In the main study, we measured monoamine levels in the nucleus accumbens (NAc) of early postpartum FSL and SD dams during an interaction with pups, using the microdialysis technique. In addition, we compared the preference patterns of FSL and SD rats using the conditioned place preference paradigm, with pups as the unconditioned stimuli.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Dopamine (DA) levels in dialysates from the NAc of SD dams but not FSL dams were elevated while interacting with pups but the metabolism of DA to dihydroxyphenylacetic acid was greater in FSL than in SD dams. While SD dams showed a conditioned preference for a region that was associated with SD pups, FSL dams did not show a preference for regions associated either with SD or FSL pups, but water deprived FSL rats demonstrated a preference to a region associated with water, eliminating an alternative explanation of learning deficit in FSL rats.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Taken together, these results suggest that FSL dams are less rewarded by pups, compared to control dams.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat-Gan, Israel.
authors.forename: Yael
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Lavi-Avnon
authors.forename: Aron
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Weller
authors.forename: John P M
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: Finberg
authors.forename: Iris
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Gispan-Herman
authors.forename: Noa
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Kinor
authors.forename: Yaakov
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Stern
authors.forename: Mariana
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Schroeder
authors.forename: Vered
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Gelber
authors.forename: S Yoav
authors.initials: SY
authors.lastname: Bergman
authors.forename: David H
authors.initials: DH
authors.lastname: Overstreet
authors.forename: Gal
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Yadid
mesh_terms: D015102:3,4-Dihydroxyphenylacetic Acid / Q000032:analysis / Q000378:metabolism; D000367:Age Factors; D000818:Animals; D000831:Animals, Newborn; D001522:Behavior, Animal / Q000502:physiology; D001835:Body Weight; D003866:Depressive Disorder / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000523:psychology*; D015314:Dialysis Solutions / Q000032:analysis / Q000737:chemistry; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D004298:Dopamine / Q000032:analysis / Q000378:metabolism; D005260:Female; D006719:Homovanillic Acid / Q000032:analysis / Q000378:metabolism; D006897:Hydroxyindoleacetic Acid / Q000032:analysis / Q000378:metabolism; D008297:Male; D008425:Maternal Behavior / Q000502:physiology* / Q000523:psychology*; D017551:Microdialysis / Q000379:methods; D009714:Nucleus Accumbens / Q000378:metabolism; D051381:Rats; D011919:Rats, Inbred Strains; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D012201:Reward; D012701:Serotonin / Q000032:analysis / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D015314:Dialysis Solutions; D015102:3,4-Dihydroxyphenylacetic Acid; D012701:Serotonin; D006897:Hydroxyindoleacetic Acid; D004298:Dopamine; D006719:Homovanillic Acid