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Subsensitivity to rewarding and locomotor stimulant effects of a dopamine agonist following chronic mild stress

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Abstract

Chronic exposure to very mild unpredictable stress has previously been found to reduce or abolish the acquisition of place preference conditioning. In the present study, chronic mild stress was found to abolish the acquisition of preferences for a distinctive environment paired with systemic administration of amphetamine (0.5 mg/kg) or quinpirole (100–400 µg/kg) or with quinpirole (0.75 µg) administered bilaterally within the nucleus accumbens. The locomotor stimulant effects of quinpirole (100–400 µg/kg) were also attenuated in stressed animals. The results suggest that decreased sensitivity to reward following chronic mild stress results from a decreased sensitivity of dopamine D2 receptors within the nucleus accumbens.

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Author notes

  1. Mariusz Papp

    Present address: Institute of Pharmacology, Polish Academy of Sciences, Krakow, Poland

  2. Richard Muscat

    Present address: Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Malta, Msida, Malta

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychology, City of London Polytechnic, Old Castle Street, E1 7NT, London, UK

    Mariusz Papp, Richard Muscat & Paul Willner

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  1. Mariusz Papp
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  2. Richard Muscat
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  3. Paul Willner
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Papp, M., Muscat, R. & Willner, P. Subsensitivity to rewarding and locomotor stimulant effects of a dopamine agonist following chronic mild stress. Psychopharmacology 110, 152–158 (1993). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02246965

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02246965

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