The serotonin system is intimately linked to both the mediation of anxiety and long-term effects of cocaine, potentially through interaction of inhibitory 5-HT2C receptor and gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) networks. This study characterized the function of the dorsal raphe (DR) 5-HT2C receptor and GABA network in anxiety produced by chronic cocaine withdrawal. C57BL/6 mice were injected with saline or cocaine (15 mg/kg) 3 times daily for 10 days, and tested on the elevated plus maze 30 minutes, 25 hours, or 7 days after the last injection. Cocaine-withdrawn mice showed heightened anxiety-like behavior at 25 hours of withdrawal, as compared to saline controls. Anxiety-like behavior was not different when mice were tested 30 minutes or 7 days after the last cocaine injection. Electrophysiology data revealed that serotonin cells from cocaine-withdrawn mice exhibited increased GABA inhibitory postsynaptic currents (IPSCs) in specific DR subregions dependent on withdrawal time (25 h or 7 d), an effect that was absent in cells from non-withdrawn mice (30 minutes after the last cocaine injection). Increased IPSC activity was restored to baseline levels following bath application of the 5-HT2C receptor antagonist, SB 242084. In a separate cohort of cocaine-injected mice at 25 hours of withdrawal, both global and intra-DR blockade of 5-HT2C receptors prior to elevated plus maze testing attenuated anxiety-like behavior. This study demonstrates that DR 5-HT2C receptor blockade prevents anxiety-like behavior produced by cocaine withdrawal, potentially through attenuation of heightened GABA activity, supporting a role for the 5-HT2C receptor in mediating anxiety produced by cocaine withdrawal.

The reinforcing efficacy of cocaine is largely determined by its capacity to inhibit the dopamine transporter (DAT), and emerging evidence suggests that differences in cocaine potency are linked to several symptoms of cocaine use disorder. Despite this evidence, the neural processes that govern cocaine potency in vivo remain unclear. In male rats, we used chemogenetics with intra-VTA microinfusions of the agonist clozapine-n-oxide to bidirectionally modulate dopamine neurons. Using ex vivo fast scan cyclic voltammetry, pharmacological probes of the DAT, biochemical assessments of DAT membrane availability and phosphorylation, and cocaine self-administration, we tested the effects of chemogenetic manipulations on cocaine potency at distal DATs in the nucleus accumbens as well as the behavioral economics of cocaine self-administration. We discovered that chemogenetic manipulation of dopamine neurons produced rapid, bidirectional modulation of cocaine potency at DATs in the nucleus accumbens. We then provided evidence that changes in cocaine potency are associated with alterations in DAT affinity for cocaine and demonstrated that this change in affinity coincides with DAT conformation biases and changes in DAT phosphorylation state. Finally, we showed that chemogenetic manipulation of dopamine neurons alters cocaine consumption in a manner consistent with changes in cocaine potency at distal DATs. Based on the spatial and temporal constraints inherent to our experimental design, we posit that changes in cocaine potency are driven by alterations in dopamine neuron activity. When considered together, these observations provide a novel mechanism through which GPCRs regulate cocaine's pharmacological and behavioral effects.

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The neurotransmitter dopamine (DA) is involved in motivation, reward mechanisms, and many central nervous system diseases. DA is transported into the presynaptic neurons by a protein called dopamine transporter (DAT). The psychostimulant cocaine is an inhibitor of DAT. When DAT is inhibited by cocaine, the DA in the synaptic cleft increases and this leads to amplified downstream dopaminergic signaling primarily in the mesolimbic pathway. This increase in cocaine-induced DA signaling is responsible for the addictive properties of cocaine. Because DAT is the primary target of cocaine, compounds acting on the DAT in novel ways could potentially treat cocaine use disorders. We previously found a novel compound-KM822 and characterized it as an allosteric modulator of DAT function. KM822 significantly decreases cocaine-induced locomotive response in planarians. To test if KM822 has similar effects in mammals, we administered KM822 and cocaine intracranially into nucleus accumbens (NAc) area in Long Evans rats and measured the locomotion changes. We targeted the NAc as it is a part of the brain that plays a crucial role in the mesolimbic dopaminergic pathway and has been recognized by its high density of DAT. Our results showed that KM822 significantly decreased hyper-locomotion induced by cocaine and notably did not cause any locomotion changes by itself. We also examined KM822's ability to interfere with cocaine's rewarding effect using the conditioned place preference (CPP) assay. In this assay, animals are tested for their preference for a cocaine-associated environment as a model of cocaine seeking. Unlike the locomotion assay, this assay is more relevant to behaviors associated with cocaine addiction and therefore has higher translational value. CPP is also utilized to determine the addictive liability of KM822. c-Fos expression is frequently utilized as a functional marker to investigate neuronal processes in response to a stimuli. To determine how KM822 affects neuronal activity in the NAc, c-Fos staining was conducted, and the expression of c-Fos was compared between animals pre-treated with KM822 and those pre-treated with vehicle before cocaine infusion. In the future, we plan to further assess the impact of KM822 in extinction and relapse utilizing CPP. Overall, these studies demonstrate the ability of KM822 to block DAT inhibitor-induced behaviors in rats and provide strong evidence that the novel allosteric DAT modulator KM822 has significant potential for treating cocaine addiction.

Relapse to drug seeking involves transient synaptic remodelling that occurs in response to drug-associated cues. This remodelling includes activation of matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) to initiate catalytic signalling in the extracellular matrix in the nucleus accumbens core (NAcore). We hypothesized that MMP activity would be increased in the NAcore during cue-induced methamphetamine (meth) seeking in a rat model of meth use and relapse. Male and female rats had indwelling jugular catheters and bilateral intracranial cannula targeting the NAcore surgically implanted.Following recovery, rats underwent meth or saline self-administration (6 h/day for 15 days) in which active lever responding was paired with a light + tone stimulus complex, followed by home cage abstinence. Testing occurred after 7 or 30 days of abstinence. On test day, rats were microinjected with a fluorescein isothiocyanate (FITC)-quenched gelatin substrate that fluoresces following cleavage by MMP-2,9, allowing for the quantification of gelatinase activity during cued-relapse testing.MMP-2,9 activity was significantly increased in the NAcore by meth cues presentation after 7 and 30 days of abstinence, indicating that remodelling by MMPs occurs during presentation of meth associated cues. Surprisingly, although cue-induced seeking increased between Days 7 and 30, MMP-2,9 activity did not increase. These findings indicate that although MMP activation is elicited during meth cue-induced seeking, MMP activation did not parallel the meth seeking that occurs during extended drug abstinence.