Paradoxical effects of injection stress and nicotine exposure experienced during adolescence on learning in a serial multiple choice (SMC) task in adult female rats.

ABSTRACT: Nicotine exposure in adolescent rats has been shown to cause learning impairments that persist into adulthood long after nicotine exposure has ended. This study was designed to assess the extent to which the effects of adolescent nicotine exposure on learning in adulthood can be accounted for by adolescent injection stress experienced concurrently with adolescent nicotine exposure. Female rats received either 0.033 mg/h nicotine (expressed as the weight of the free base) or bacteriostatic water vehicle by osmotic pump infusion on postnatal days 25-53 (P25-53). Half of the nicotine-exposed rats and half of the vehicle rats also received twice-daily injection stress consisting of intraperitoneal saline injections on P26-53. Together these procedures produced 4 groups: No Nicotine/No Stress,

SUBMITTER: Renaud SM 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4460839 | biostudies-literature | 2015 Mar-Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature