| Autor: |
Maria Vrettou, Stefan Bernhard Thalhammer, Anne-Lie Svensson, Sylvie Dumas, Kent W Nilsson, Åsa Wallén-Mackenzie, Robert Fredriksson, Ingrid Nylander, Erika Comasco |
| Jazyk: |
angličtina |
| Rok vydání: |
2023 |
| Předmět: |
|
| Zdroj: |
Drug and Alcohol Dependence Reports, Vol 8, Iss , Pp 100180- (2023) |
| Druh dokumentu: |
article |
| ISSN: |
2772-7246 |
| DOI: |
10.1016/j.dadr.2023.100180 |
| Popis: |
Background: Initiation of use/co-use of nicotine and alcohol, commonly occurring in an episodic manner during adolescence, can imprint vulnerability to the developing brain and lead to addiction. The ventral tegmental area (VTA) is a key heterogeneous region of the mesocorticolimbic circuit involved in the binge-drinking and intoxication step of the addiction circuit. Higher human post-mortem VTA expression of vesicular glutamate transporter 2 (VGLUT2), a marker of the glutamatergic phenotype also expressed in dopaminergic [Tyrosine Hydroxylase (Th)-positive] neurons, has been associated with chronic nicotine use and co-use with alcohol. Methods: The present study aimed to map and characterize the Vglut2- and Th-expressing neurons in the VTA of adolescent male rats exposed or not to prolonged (six-weeks) episodic (three consecutive days/week) nicotine and/or alcohol administration. Nicotine (0.35 mg/kg free base) was injected subcutaneously, whereas alcohol (2 g/kg 20%) was administrated via gavage. Vglut2 and Th mRNA was assessed in the anterior and posterior VTA by use of in situ hybridization. Results: The profile of neurons varied with substance-exposure among VTA subregions. Th-only expressing neurons were more abundant in the posterior VTA of the group exposed to nicotine-only, compared to controls. The same neurons were, on the contrary, less present in the anterior VTA of animals exposed to alcohol-only, who also displayed a higher number of Vglut2-expressing neurons in the lateral anterior VTA. Conclusions: VTA Vglut2- and Th-only neurons seem differentially involved in the effects of adolescent episodic nicotine and alcohol exposure in the anterior and posterior VTA. |
| Databáze: |
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| Externí odkaz: |
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