Oxygen responses within the nucleus accumbens are associated with individual differences in effort exertion in rats.

ABSTRACT: Goal-directed motivated behaviour is crucial for everyday life. Such behaviour is often measured, in rodents, under a progressive ratio (PR) schedule of reinforcement. Previous studies have identified a few brain structures critical for supporting PR performance. However, the association between neural activity within these regions and individual differences in effort-related behaviour is not known. Presently, we used constant potential in vivo oxygen amperometry, a surrogate for functional resonance imaging in rodents, to assess changes in tissue oxygen levels within the nucleus accumbens (NAc) and orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) in male Wistar rats performing a PR task. Within both regions, oxygen responses to rewards increased as the effort exerted to obtain the rewards was larger. Furthermo

SUBMITTER: Hailwood JM 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6282581 | biostudies-literature | 2018 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature