title: Oxytocin directly administered into the nucleus accumbens core or subthalamic nucleus attenuates methamphetamine-induced conditioned place preference.
abstract: Accumulating evidence indicates that the neuropeptide oxytocin (OXY) may modulate reward-related behavioural responses to methamphetamine (METH) administration. Limited research has examined the effect of OXY on METH-induced conditioned place preference (CPP) and little is known about the neural mechanisms involved. A Fos immunohistochemistry study recently demonstrated that peripheral OXY administration reduced METH-induced Fos expression within the nucleus accumbens (NAc) core and subthalamic nucleus (STh) in rats. The current study aimed to (i) investigate the effect of systemically administered OXY on METH-induced CPP, (ii) determine the effectiveness of a single-trial CPP procedure with METH, in order to (iii) evaluate whether pretreatment with OXY injected directly into the NAc core or the STh attenuates METH-induced CPP. Results showed that male Sprague Dawley rats learned to associate unique compartmental cues with METH (1 mg/kg, i.p.) such that they spent more time in the METH-paired compartment and less time in the saline-paired compartment. Pretreatment with systemic OXY (0.6 mg, i.p.), or OXY (0.6 ng, i.c.) microinjected into the NAc core or the STh prior to METH administration attenuated the formation of a CPP to METH. This provides further evidence that OXY acts within either the NAc core or the STh to reduce the rewarding effects of METH administration.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, Macquarie University, Sydney, Australia.
authors.forename: Sarah J
authors.initials: SJ
authors.lastname: Baracz
authors.forename: Poppy I
authors.initials: PI
authors.lastname: Rourke
authors.forename: Margery C
authors.initials: MC
authors.lastname: Pardey
authors.forename: Glenn E
authors.initials: GE
authors.lastname: Hunt
authors.forename: Iain S
authors.initials: IS
authors.lastname: McGregor
authors.forename: Jennifer L
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Cornish
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002755:Choice Behavior / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology; D003213:Conditioning, Psychological / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology*; D007274:Injections, Intraperitoneal; D008297:Male; D008694:Methamphetamine / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors* / Q000494:pharmacology; D008845:Microinjections / Q000379:methods / Q000523:psychology; D009714:Nucleus Accumbens / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology*; D010121:Oxytocin / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000494:pharmacology / Q000502:physiology*; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D012201:Reward; D020531:Subthalamic Nucleus / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology*
chemical_list: D008694:Methamphetamine; D010121:Oxytocin