Forced Abstinence from Cocaine Self-Administration is Associated with DNA Methylation Changes in Myelin Genes in the Corpus Callosum: a Preliminary Study.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Human cocaine abuse is associated with alterations in white matter integrity revealed upon brain imaging, an observation that is recapitulated in an animal model of continuous cocaine exposure. The mechanism through which cocaine may affect white matter is unknown and the present study tested the hypothesis that cocaine self-administration results in changes in DNA methylation that could result in altered expression of several myelin genes that could contribute to the effects of cocaine on white matter integrity.

Methods

In the present study, we examined the impact of forced abstinence from cocaine self-administration on chromatin associated changes in white matter. To this end, rats were trained to self-administer cocaine (0.75 mg/kg/0.1 mL infusion) for 14 days

SUBMITTER: Nielsen DA 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3374938 | biostudies-literature | 2012

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature