The effects of focused ultrasound pulsation of nucleus accumbens in opioid-dependent rats

Focused ultrasound stimulation of infralimbic cortex attenuates reinstatement of methamphetamine-induced conditioned place preference in rats

“…It has been reported that applying 2.4-MHz FUS to the nucleus accumbens region for 10 ​min before administering morphine for additional CPP training prevented the increase in morphine-induced place preference scores in rats that had already developed morphine CPP. However, FUS did not cause a significant reduction of morphine preference [ 33 ]. Our current study examined the effects of FUS on reinstatement of MA CPP, which mimics drug relapse, which is the first to reveal the beneficial potential of FUS stimulation in the treatment of drug use disorder.…”

“…Finally, the underlying mechanism of how FUS reduces MA-seeking behaviors requires further exploration. It has been implicated that activation of voltage- and calcium-gated potassium channels in the brain potentially benefit the treatment of MA use disorder [ 32 , 33 ]. Given that voltage-gated ion channels are one of the targets for FUS-induced neuromodulation [ 34 , 35 ], it is of importance to explore whether FUS suppresses the reinstatement of MA seeking behavior by altering the characteristics of ion channels in the targeted brain regions.…”

The Prospect of Focal Ultrasound in the Treatment of Mental Disorders

“…The results indicated that such intervention significantly increased GDNF, destroyed morphine-induced conditioned place preference (CPP), namely, disrupted the preference of the animals for a drug-paired compartment versus other compartments involved in a conditioning task, and reduced the withdrawal symptoms of morphine addiction in rats [35]. Another low frequency FUS study targeting the nucleus accumbens of rats under morphine reported no rise in morphine-induced place preference in comparison to a control group, although with no significant reduction of morphine preference [36].…”