Social defeat disrupts reward learning and potentiates striatal nociceptin/orphanin FQ mRNA in rats.

ABSTRACT:

Rationale

Mood disorders can be triggered by stress and are characterized by deficits in reward processing, including disrupted reward learning (the ability to modulate behavior according to past rewards). Reward learning is regulated by the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) and striatal circuits, both of which are implicated in the pathophysiology of mood disorders.

Objectives

Here, we assessed in rats the effects of a potent stressor (social defeat) on reward learning and gene expression in the ACC, ventral tegmental area (VTA), and striatum.

Methods

Adult male Wistar rats were trained on an operant probabilistic reward task (PRT) and then exposed to 3 days of social defeat before assessment of reward learning. After testing, the ACC, VTA, and striatum were dissected,

SUBMITTER: Der-Avakian A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5420477 | biostudies-literature | 2017 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature