CaMKII antagonism in the ventral tegmental area impairs acquisition of conditioned approach learning in rats.

ABSTRACT: This study investigated the role of calcium²⁺/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase II (CaMKII), a protein in the second messenger pathway of NMDA receptors, in the ventral tegmental area (VTA) in the acquisition and performance of conditioned approach learning. Male Long-Evans rats (N = 79) were exposed to 3 (to test acquisition) or 7 (to test performance) conditioning sessions in which they received 30 paired presentations of a light stimulus (CS) and a food pellet (US) on a random time schedule. These conditioning sessions were then followed by one 30-min session without the CS or US and lastly by a CS-only test session, where only the light stimulus was presented (without food) according to the same schedule as the conditioning sessions. Bilateral intra-VTA injections of KN93

SUBMITTER: Nisanov R 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7655631 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature