Abused drug-induced intracranial self-stimulation is correlated with the alteration of dopamine transporter availability in the medial prefrontal cortex and nucleus accumbens of mice.
Biomedicine & pharmacotherapy = Biomedecine & pharmacotherapie November 8, 2023 Yong-Qing Zhang, Hyun Kyu Min, Eunchong Hong et al.
In mice, 18 abused drugs (including cocaine, methamphetamine, and several synthetic cannabinoids and cathinones) were tested using intracranial self-stimulation (ICSS) of the medial forebrain bundle to assess their reward-seeking potential. Dopamine transporter (DAT) availability in the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) and nucleus accumbens (NAc) significantly correlated with the ICSS threshold after drug treatment. Extracellular dopamine and calcium levels in PC-12 cells also correlated with the ICSS threshold. The findings suggest that drug-induced reward-seeking behavior may be linked to DAT availability-mediated extracellular dopamine levels in the mPFC and NAc.