title: 3,4-Methylenedioxypyrovalerone (MDPV)-induced conditioned taste avoidance in the F344/N and LEW rat strains.
abstract: The inbred Fischer (F344) and Lewis (LEW) rats, while originally developed as animal models for cancer and tissue transplantation research, have since been used to study genetic differences in a variety of physiological and behavioral endpoints. In this context, LEW rats show greater sensitivity to the aversive effects of cocaine as compared to F344 rats in a conditioned taste avoidance procedure. Like cocaine, 3,4-methylenedioxypyrovalerone (MDPV; "bath salts") acts as a dopamine transport blocker and possesses aversive properties, making it a good candidate for assessing whether the aforementioned strain differences with cocaine would generalize to drugs with similar biochemical action. Accordingly, male F344 and LEW rats were exposed to a novel saccharin solution followed by injections of one of four doses of MDPV in a taste avoidance procedure. Over the four saccharin/MDPV pairings during conditioning, core body temperatures were also assessed. Similar to previous research, MDPV induced robust dose-dependent taste avoidance, although no effect of strain was observed. MDPV also produced hyperthermia that was independent of strain and unrelated to the conditioned taste avoidance. These findings argue for a complex influence of multiple (and likely interacting) monoaminergic systems mediating MDPV-induced taste avoidance in the two strains and suggest different mechanisms of avoidance learning for cocaine and MDPV.
authors.affiliation: Psychopharmacology Laboratory, Department of Psychology, American University, Washington, DC 20016, United States. Electronic address: hk9905a@american.edu.
authors.forename: Heather E
authors.initials: HE
authors.lastname: King
authors.affiliation: Psychopharmacology Laboratory, Department of Psychology, American University, Washington, DC 20016, United States.
authors.forename: Bradley
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Wetzell
authors.affiliation: Chemical Biology Research Branch, National Institute on Drug Abuse, Bethesda, MD 20892, United States.
authors.forename: Kenner C
authors.initials: KC
authors.lastname: Rice
authors.affiliation: Psychopharmacology Laboratory, Department of Psychology, American University, Washington, DC 20016, United States.
authors.forename: Anthony L
authors.initials: AL
authors.lastname: Riley
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001362:Avoidance Learning / Q000187:drug effects*; D052117:Benzodioxoles / Q000494:pharmacology*; D001831:Body Temperature / Q000187:drug effects; D003213:Conditioning, Psychological / Q000187:drug effects*; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D008297:Male; D011759:Pyrrolidines / Q000494:pharmacology*; D051381:Rats; D011916:Rats, Inbred F344; D011917:Rats, Inbred Lew; D013045:Species Specificity; D013649:Taste; D000094982:Synthetic Cathinone
chemical_list: D052117:Benzodioxoles; D011759:Pyrrolidines; D000094982:Synthetic Cathinone
keywords: Conditioned taste avoidance; F344 and LEW rats; Hyperthermia; MDPV; Strain differences