Investigating the influence of PFC transection and nicotine on dynamics of AMPA and NMDA receptors of VTA dopaminergic neurons.
BACKGROUND
All drugs of abuse, including nicotine, activate the mesocorticolimbic system that plays critical roles in nicotine reward and reinforcement development and triggers glutamatergic synaptic plasticity on the dopamine (DA) neurons in the ventral tegmental area (VTA). The addictive behavior and firing pattern of the VTA DA neurons are thought to be controlled by the glutamatergic synaptic input from prefrontal cortex (PFC). Interrupted functional input from PFC to VTA was shown to decrease the effects of the drug on the addiction process. Nicotine treatment could enhance the AMPA/NMDA ratio in VTA DA neurons, which is thought as a common addiction mechanism. In this study, we investigate whether or not the lack of glutamate transmission from PFC to VTA could make any change in the effects of nicotine.


METHODS
We used the traditional AMPA/NMDA peak ratio, AMPA/NMDA area ratio, and KL (Kullback-Leibler) divergence analysis method for the present study.


RESULTS
Our results using AMPA/NMDA peak ratio showed insignificant difference between PFC intact and transected and treated with saline. However, using AMPA/NMDA area ratio and KL divergence method, we observed a significant difference when PFC is interrupted with saline treatment. One possible reason for the significant effect that the PFC transection has on the synaptic responses (as indicated by the AMPA/NMDA area ratio and KL divergence) may be the loss of glutamatergic inputs. The glutamatergic input is one of the most important factors that contribute to the peak ratio level.


CONCLUSIONS
Our results suggested that even within one hour after a single nicotine injection, the peak ratio of AMPA/NMDA on VTA DA neurons could be enhanced.
Department of Biomedical Engineering, Cullen College of Engineering, University of Houston, Houston, TX 77204, USA.
Ting
T
Chen
Die
D
Zhang
Andrei
A
Dragomir
Kunikazu
K
Kobayashi
Yasemin
Y
Akay
Metin
M
Akay
D000465:Algorithms; D000818:Animals; D059290:Dopaminergic Neurons / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology*; D004569:Electroencephalography; D055724:Electrophysiological Phenomena; D019706:Excitatory Postsynaptic Potentials / Q000502:physiology; D009538:Nicotine / Q000494:pharmacology*; D018722:Nicotinic Agonists / Q000494:pharmacology*; D017397:Prefrontal Cortex / Q000502:physiology*; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D018091:Receptors, AMPA / Q000502:physiology*; D016194:Receptors, N-Methyl-D-Aspartate / Q000502:physiology*; D017557:Ventral Tegmental Area / Q000166:cytology / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology*
D018722:Nicotinic Agonists; D018091:Receptors, AMPA; D016194:Receptors, N-Methyl-D-Aspartate; D009538:Nicotine