Glutamatergic Projections from the Entorhinal Cortex to Dorsal Dentate Gyrus Mediate Context-Induced Reinstatement of Heroin Seeking.

ABSTRACT: Reexposure to the context associated with heroin intake provokes relapse to drug taking after abstinence. The dorsal dentate gyrus (dDG) and entorhinal cortex (EC) have been implicated in contextual memory processing, but the underlying circuit mechanisms in context-induced relapse remain poorly understood. In this study, using a self-administration rat model, we found that activation and synaptic transmission of glutamatergic projections from the EC to the upper blade of dentate gyrus (dDG_ub) were significantly enhanced during context-induced reinstatement of heroin seeking. This effect was associated with increased of phosphorylation of GluN2B-containing NMDA receptors (GluN2B) at Y1472, ratio of GluN2B membrane/total protein levels, and expression of downstream extracellular

SUBMITTER: Ge F 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5520779 | biostudies-literature | 2017 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature