title: Brain Hyperglycemia Induced by Heroin: Association with Metabolic Neural Activation.
abstract: Glucose enters the brain extracellular space from arterial blood, and its proper delivery is essential for metabolic activity of brain cells. By using enzyme-based biosensors coupled with high-speed amperometry in freely moving rats, we previously showed that glucose levels in the nucleus accumbens (NAc) display high variability, increasing rapidly following exposure to various arousing stimuli. In this study, the same technology was used to assess NAc glucose fluctuations induced by intravenous heroin. Heroin passively injected at a low dose optimal for maintaining self-administration behavior (100 μg/kg) induces a rapid but moderate glucose rise (∼150-200 μM or ∼15-25% over resting baseline). When the heroin dose was doubled and tripled, the increase became progressively larger in magnitude and longer in duration. Heroin-induced glucose increases also occurred in other brain structures (medial thalamus, lateral striatum, hippocampus), suggesting that brain hyperglycemia is a whole-brain phenomenon but changes were notably distinct in each structure. While local vasodilation appears to be the possible mechanism underlying the rapid rise in extracellular glucose levels, the driving factor for this vasodilation (central vs peripheral) remains to be clarified. The heroin-induced NAc glucose increases positively correlated with increases in intracerebral heat production determined in separate experiments using multisite temperature recordings (NAc, temporal muscle and skin). However, glucose levels rise very rapidly, preceding much slower increases in brain heat production, a measure of metabolic activation associated with glucose consumption.
authors.affiliation: In-Vivo Electrophysiology Unit, Behavioral Neuroscience Branch, National Institute on Drug Abuse - Intramural Research Program, National Institutes of Health , DHHS, 333 Cassell Drive, Baltimore, Maryland 21224, United States.
authors.forename: Ernesto
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Solis
authors.affiliation: In-Vivo Electrophysiology Unit, Behavioral Neuroscience Branch, National Institute on Drug Abuse - Intramural Research Program, National Institutes of Health , DHHS, 333 Cassell Drive, Baltimore, Maryland 21224, United States.
authors.forename: R Aaron
authors.initials: RA
authors.lastname: Bola
authors.affiliation: In-Vivo Electrophysiology Unit, Behavioral Neuroscience Branch, National Institute on Drug Abuse - Intramural Research Program, National Institutes of Health , DHHS, 333 Cassell Drive, Baltimore, Maryland 21224, United States.
authors.forename: Bradley J
authors.initials: BJ
authors.lastname: Fasulo
authors.affiliation: In-Vivo Electrophysiology Unit, Behavioral Neuroscience Branch, National Institute on Drug Abuse - Intramural Research Program, National Institutes of Health , DHHS, 333 Cassell Drive, Baltimore, Maryland 21224, United States.
authors.forename: Eugene A
authors.initials: EA
authors.lastname: Kiyatkin
mesh_terms: D000704:Analysis of Variance; D000818:Animals; D001831:Body Temperature / Q000187:drug effects; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D055664:Electrochemical Techniques; D005947:Glucose / Q000378:metabolism*; D003932:Heroin / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000494:pharmacology*; D008124:Locomotion / Q000187:drug effects; D008297:Male; D009132:Muscles / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology; D009294:Narcotics / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000494:pharmacology*; D009714:Nucleus Accumbens / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000502:physiology; D051381:Rats; D020318:Rats, Long-Evans; D012646:Self Administration; D013997:Time Factors; D014851:Wakefulness
chemical_list: D009294:Narcotics; D003932:Heroin; D005947:Glucose
keywords: Opiate drugs; brain temperature; glucose; nucleus accumbens; rats; vasoconstriction