Intermittent access to oxycodone decreases dopamine uptake in the nucleus accumbens core during abstinence.

ABSTRACT: A major obstacle in treating opioid use disorder is the persistence of drug seeking or craving during periods of abstinence, which is believed to contribute to relapse. Dopamine transmission in the mesolimbic pathway is posited to contribute to opioid reinforcement, but the processes by which dopamine influences drug seeking have not been completely elucidated. To examine whether opioid seeking during abstinence is associated with alterations in dopamine transmission, female and male rats self-administered oxycodone under an intermittent access schedule of reinforcement. Following self-administration, rats underwent a forced abstinence period, and cue-induced seeking tests were conducted to assess oxycodone seeking. One day following the final seeking test, rats were sacrificed to perform

SUBMITTER: Samson KR 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10262085 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature