PMCOL305 Lecture Notes - Lecture 3: Conditioned Place Preference, Microdialysis, Stim

• School: University of Alberta
• Department: Pharmacology
• Course: PMCOL305
• Professor: Martin Davies

Document Summary

Same drug taken different ways can alter potential for abuse. How these pathways are measured/monitored in brain of living animals. Our (cid:271)rai(cid:374) has a (cid:862)re(cid:449)ard path(cid:449)ay(cid:863) (cid:894)does (cid:373)ore tha(cid:374) just (cid:862)re(cid:449)ards(cid:863)(cid:895) Thought to be a primitive circuit that reward behaviours that increased survival prompting an animal to repeat those behaviours. Strength of reinforcing property correlates strongly with addiction potential of drugs. Reinforcement: behavioural event followed by a consequent event such that the behaviour is then more likely to be repeated. Natural reinforcement ie burgers start to be lost with routine cocaine users. How do you measure the strength of the reinforcement of these drugs. In context of drug abuse, behavioural event = when drug first admin. If drug = perceived as a reward, presses lever with increased freq. Some drugs cause animals to press 100s of times to get drug. Can mod so drug injected systemically or in specific brain regions. Stop grooming themselves and can die from no water/food.