Nicotine in an animal model of attention

Stolerman, I. P.; Mirza, Naheed; Hahn, Britta; Shoaib, Mohammed

doi:10.1016/s0014-2999(99)00886-9

Cited by 131 publications

(87 citation statements)

References 27 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…The 5-CSR task was developed to examine sustained attention in rodents (Carli et al, 1983) and is regarded as being analogous to the CPT (Jones and Higgins, 1995). This task has been used extensively with rats, with nicotine generally showing an improvement in attention, but only when lesions or specific task challenges have been introduced to impair performance (Mirza and Stolerman, 1998;Grottick and Higgins, 2000;Stolerman et al, 2000;Mirza and Bright, 2001;Hahn et al, 2002Hahn et al, , 2003aGrottick et al, 2003). A consistent demonstration of a nicotine-induced facilitation of attention in unimpaired rats, unlike observations in humans , has proven challenging (Mirza and Bright, 2001;Terry et al, 2002).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Four groups of mice, previously exposed to different doses of nicotine, were given a 3-week washout period with saline to ensure a return to prestudy baseline performance. These mice were then tested in the modified task and given different doses of nicotine (Figure 1), based upon previous rodent and human studies (Muir et al, 1995;Grobe et al, 1998;Stolerman et al, 2000;Mirza and Bright, 2001). The 3 mg/kg dose of nicotine produced a clear improvement in performance, with a significant reduction in percent omissions and a concomitant increase in proportion correct.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In rodent brains, the two most predominant nAChRs appear to be the heteromeric a4b2 nAChR, and the homomeric a7 nAChR, accounting for 85 and 10% of neuronal nAChRs respectively (Clarke et al, 1985). In rats, the roles that these receptors play in sustained attention is examined using the 5-choice serial reaction-time (5-CSR) task (Mirza and Stolerman, 1998;Grottick and Higgins, 2000;Stolerman et al, 2000;Mirza and Bright, 2001;Hahn et al, 2002Hahn et al, , 2003aTerry et al, 2002;Grottick et al, 2003). While nicotine-induced improvements in sustained attention have been reported in the rat literature, these studies have generally required the additional complexities afforded by brain lesions, poorly performing subjects, or task challenges (Muir et al, 1995;Grottick and Higgins, 2000;Hahn et al, 2002).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Nicotine Improves Sustained Attention in Mice: Evidence for Involvement of the α7 Nicotinic Acetylcholine Receptor

Young

Finlayson

Spratt

et al. 2004

Neuropsychopharmacol

209

174

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

In humans, nicotine has been shown to improve attention in both normal and impaired individuals. Observations in rats reflect some, but not all aspects of the nicotine-induced improvements in humans. To date these findings have not been replicated in mice. To examine the effect of nicotine on sustained attention in mice, we have established a version of the 5-choice serial reaction-time (5-CSR) task with graded levels of difficulty, based upon spatial displacement and a variable intertrial interval. Using this paradigm, microgram doses of nicotine produced a consistent reduction in the level of omissions and an improvement in proportion correct in normal mice. This improvement in sustained attention was made irrespectively of whether mice had previously received nicotine. In an attempt to elucidate which nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (nAChR) subtype(s) mediate this effect, we examined the performance of a7 nAChR knockout (KO) mice in the 5-CSR task. a7 nAChR KO mice not only acquired the task more slowly than their wild-type littermates, but on attaining asymptotic performance, they exhibited a higher level of omissions. In conclusion, by increasing the level of task difficulty, the performance of mice was maintained at sufficiently low levels to allow a demonstrable improvement in performance upon nicotine administration. Furthermore, as a7 KO mice are clearly impaired in the acquisition and asymptotic performance of this task, the a7 nAChR may be involved in mediating these effects of nicotine.

show abstract

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Nicotine Improves Sustained Attention in Mice: Evidence for Involvement of the α7 Nicotinic Acetylcholine Receptor

Young

Finlayson

Spratt

et al. 2004

Neuropsychopharmacol

209

174

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…In rat (for reviews see Brioni et al, 1997;Levin and Simon, 1998) and monkey (for review see Buccafusco et al, 1996) models of nicotine-induced cognitive improvement is more clearly seen in terms of effects on memory performance than attention, although attentional performance has been documented to be improved by nicotine in some studies (Mirza and Stolerman, 1998;McGaughy et al, 1999;Stolerman et al, 2000). These animal models are vital for the determination of the mechanisms of nicotinic-induced cognitive improvement.…”

Section: Systemic Nicotine Effects On Memorymentioning

confidence: 99%

Nicotinic receptor subtypes and cognitive function

2002

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

ABSTRACT:Nicotinic receptor systems are involved in a wide variety of behavioral functions including cognitive function. Nicotinic medications may provide beneficial treatment for cognitive dysfunction such as Alzheimer's disease, schizophrenia, and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Nicotine has been shown to improve attentional performance in all of these disorders. Better efficacy with fewer side effects might be achieved with novel nicotinic ligands selective for particular nicotinic subtypes. To develop these novel selective nicotinic ligands it is important to use animal models to determine the critical neurobehavioral bases for nicotinic involvement in cognitive function. Nicotineinduced cognitive improvement in rats is most consistently seen in working memory tasks. We have found that both acute and chronic nicotine administration significantly improves working memory performance of rats in the radial-arm maze. The pharmacologic and anatomic mechanisms for this effect have been examined in our laboratory in a series of local drug infusion studies. Both ␣4␤2 and ␣7 nicotinic receptors in the ventral hippocampus and basolateral amygdala are involved in working memory function. Working memory impairments were caused by local infusion of either ␣4␤2 or ␣7 antagonists. Ventral hippocampal ␣4␤2 blockade-induced working memory deficits are reversed by chronic systemic nicotine treatment, while ventral hippocampal ␣7 blockade-induced working memory deficits were not found to be reversed by the same nicotine regimen. Interestingly, ␣4␤2 and ␣7 induced deficits were not found to be additive in either the ventral hippocampus or the basolateral amygdala. In fact, in the amygdala, ␣7 antagonist cotreatment actually reversed the working memory impairment caused by ␣4␤2 antagonist administration. These studies of the neural nicotinic mechanisms underlying cognitive function are key for opening avenues for development of safe and effective nicotinic treatments for cognitive dysfunction.

show abstract

“…However, noncontingent nicotine could also increase reinforced behavior by enhancing sensory components of the stimulus (Terry et al 2002), facilitating the learning and memory of behavior driven by the stimulus (Levin 2002;Addy et al 2003), or increasing attention towards the stimulus (Grilly et al 2000;Stolerman et al 2000;Rezvani et al 2002). To determine if the behavioral effects of noncontingent nicotine on responding for the VS reflect an increase in the reinforcing value of the stimulus we examined the effects of contingent and noncontingent nicotine on responding for the VS on a progressive ratio (PR) reinforcement schedule, across a range of doses.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Complex interactions between nicotine and nonpharmacological stimuli reveal multiple roles for nicotine in reinforcement

et al. 2005

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Although considerable progress has been made we do not yet fully understand the behavioral and neurobiological bases of nicotine reinforcement, and without this knowledge treatment strategies aimed at reducing smoking remain deficient. This dissertation provides an original perspective on nicotine reinforcement, which arises from substantial evidence of complex interactions between nicotine and nonpharmacological stimuli. The present experiments tested the hypothesis that nicotine reinforcement derives from at least two sources: 1) the primary reinforcing properties of nicotine, an action that requires response-dependent drug administration, and 2) the more prominent ability of nicotine to enhance behavior maintained by salient non-nicotine stimuli, an action that does not require a contingent relationship between drug administration and reinforced operant responding. Although novel for nicotine, this hypothesis has origins in an extensive literature on the reinforcing properties of psychostimulant drugs. Empirical support for the application of this hypothesis to nicotine reinforcement will be presented. By investigating the interaction between nicotine and nonpharmacological stimuli within the context of drug selfadministration in rats, the present research has generated new insights into the paradox of how nicotine, an apparently weak primary reinforcer, can sustain the robust behavior observed in selfadministration and in smoking. Hypotheses generated by these data provide important direction for future investigations into the neurobiology of nicotine reinforcement.iii

show abstract

Nicotine in an animal model of attention

Cited by 131 publications

References 27 publications

Nicotine Improves Sustained Attention in Mice: Evidence for Involvement of the α7 Nicotinic Acetylcholine Receptor

Nicotine Improves Sustained Attention in Mice: Evidence for Involvement of the α7 Nicotinic Acetylcholine Receptor

Nicotinic receptor subtypes and cognitive function

Complex interactions between nicotine and nonpharmacological stimuli reveal multiple roles for nicotine in reinforcement

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About