Cocaine administration increases the fraction of CART cells in the rat nucleus accumbens that co-immunostain for c-Fos

• Published in: Neuropeptides (Edinburgh) Vol. 42; no. 3; pp. 339 - 343
• Main Authors: Hubert, G.W, Kuhar, M.J
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Oxford Elsevier Ltd 01-06-2008; Elsevier
• Subjects: Addictive behaviors; Adult and adolescent clinical studies; Advanced Basic Science; Animals; Biological and medical sciences; CART; Central Nervous System Stimulants - pharmacology; Cocaine; Cocaine - pharmacology; Drug abuse; Drug addiction; Endocrinology & Metabolism; Fluorescent Antibody Technique; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Immunohistochemistry; Male; Medical sciences; Nerve Tissue Proteins - metabolism; Neuropeptides; Neuropharmacology; Nucleus accumbens; Nucleus Accumbens - cytology; Nucleus Accumbens - drug effects; Nucleus Accumbens - metabolism; Pharmacology. Drug treatments; Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-fos - metabolism; Psychoanaleptics: cns stimulant, antidepressant agent, nootropic agent, mood stabilizer; Psychoanaleptics: cns stimulant, antidepressant agent, nootropic agent, mood stabilizer..., (alzheimer disease); Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry; Psychopathology. Psychiatry; Psychopharmacology; Rats; Rats, Sprague-Dawley; Vertebrates: endocrinology; Nucleus accumbens; Drug abuse; Neuropeptides; Cocaine; CART; Drug addiction; CNS stimulant; Rat; Psychotropic; Cocaine amphetamine regulated transcript peptide; Rodentia; Central nervous system; Basal ganglion; Substance abuse; Neuropeptide; Encephalon; Ester; Vertebrata; Mammalia; Animal; Drug of abuse; Protooncogene; Immediate early gene
• ISSN: 0143-4179; 1532-2785
• DOI: 10.1016/j.npep.2008.01.001

Abstract In order to further test whether or not psychostimulant drugs activate CART peptide-containing cells in the nucleus accumbens, we examined the fraction of CART positive cells that co-immunostained for c-Fos after administration of saline or cocaine (10 and 25 mg/kg i.p.). There was about a 45% increase in the fraction of cells that stained for both CART and c-Fos after administration of cocaine, but there was no change in the fraction after administration of saline. Moreover, the increase was not found 24 h after injection and is therefore reversible. These results support the notion that psychostimulant drugs activate CART cells in the nucleus accumbens, even under conditions where it is difficult to show a change in CART levels.