Cocaine, nicotine, and their conditioned contexts enhance consolidation of object memory in rats. 2019

Michael Wolter, and Ethan Huff, and Talia Speigel, and Boyer D Winters, and Francesco Leri
Department of Psychology and Collaborative Program in Neuroscience, University of Guelph, Guelph, Ontario N1G 2W1, Canada.

To test the hypothesis that drugs of abuse and their conditioned stimuli (CSs) enhance memory consolidation, the effects of post-training exposure to cocaine and nicotine were compared to the effects of post-training exposure to contextual stimuli that were paired with the effects of these drugs. Using the object recognition (OR) task, it was first demonstrated that both 10 and 20 mg/kg cocaine, and 0.2 and 0.4 mg/kg nicotine, enhanced recognition memory when administered immediately after, but not 6 h after the sample phase. To establish the drug CSs, rats were confined for 2 h in a chamber (the CS+) after injections of 20 mg/kg cocaine, or 0.4 mg/kg nicotine, and in another chamber (the CS-) after injections of vehicle. This was repeated over 10 d (5 drug/CS+ and 5 vehicle/CS- pairings in total). At the end of this conditioning period, when tested in a drug-free state, rats displayed conditioned hyperactivity in the CS+ relative to the CS-. More important, immediate, but not delayed, post-sample exposure to the cocaine CS+, or nicotine CS+, enhanced OR memory. Therefore, this study reports for the first time that contextual stimuli paired with cocaine and nicotine, like the drugs themselves, have the ability to enhance memory consolidation.

UI MeSH Term Description Entries
D008297 Male Males
D009538 Nicotine Nicotine is highly toxic alkaloid. It is the prototypical agonist at nicotinic cholinergic receptors where it dramatically stimulates neurons and ultimately blocks synaptic transmission. Nicotine is also important medically because of its presence in tobacco smoke. Nicotine Bitartrate,Nicotine Tartrate
D003042 Cocaine An alkaloid ester extracted from the leaves of plants including coca. It is a local anesthetic and vasoconstrictor and is clinically used for that purpose, particularly in the eye, ear, nose, and throat. It also has powerful central nervous system effects similar to the amphetamines and is a drug of abuse. Cocaine, like amphetamines, acts by multiple mechanisms on brain catecholaminergic neurons; the mechanism of its reinforcing effects is thought to involve inhibition of dopamine uptake. Cocaine HCl,Cocaine Hydrochloride,HCl, Cocaine,Hydrochloride, Cocaine
D003213 Conditioning, Psychological Simple form of learning involving the formation, strengthening, or weakening of an association between a stimulus and a response. Conditioning, Psychology,Psychological Conditioning,Social Learning Theory,Social Learning Theories,Theory, Social Learning
D004305 Dose-Response Relationship, Drug The relationship between the dose of an administered drug and the response of the organism to the drug. Dose Response Relationship, Drug,Dose-Response Relationships, Drug,Drug Dose-Response Relationship,Drug Dose-Response Relationships,Relationship, Drug Dose-Response,Relationships, Drug Dose-Response
D000069077 Memory Consolidation Neurological process involving the conversion of learned information into long-term memory. Consolidation, Memory,Consolidations, Memory,Memory Consolidations
D000818 Animals Unicellular or multicellular, heterotrophic organisms, that have sensation and the power of voluntary movement. Under the older five kingdom paradigm, Animalia was one of the kingdoms. Under the modern three domain model, Animalia represents one of the many groups in the domain EUKARYOTA. Animal,Metazoa,Animalia
D017207 Rats, Sprague-Dawley A strain of albino rat used widely for experimental purposes because of its calmness and ease of handling. It was developed by the Sprague-Dawley Animal Company. Holtzman Rat,Rats, Holtzman,Sprague-Dawley Rat,Rats, Sprague Dawley,Holtzman Rats,Rat, Holtzman,Rat, Sprague-Dawley,Sprague Dawley Rat,Sprague Dawley Rats,Sprague-Dawley Rats
D018697 Nootropic Agents Drugs used to specifically facilitate learning or memory, particularly to prevent the cognitive deficits associated with dementias. These drugs act by a variety of mechanisms. Anti-Dementia Agent,Antidementia Agent,Cognitive Enhancer,Cognitive Enhancers,Nootropic,Nootropic Agent,Nootropic Drug,Procognitive Agent,Anti-Dementia Agents,Antidementia Agents,Nootropic Drugs,Nootropics,Procognitive Agents,Agent, Anti-Dementia,Agent, Antidementia,Agent, Nootropic,Agent, Procognitive,Agents, Anti-Dementia,Agents, Antidementia,Agents, Nootropic,Agents, Procognitive,Anti Dementia Agent,Anti Dementia Agents,Drug, Nootropic,Drugs, Nootropic,Enhancer, Cognitive,Enhancers, Cognitive
D018722 Nicotinic Agonists Drugs that bind to and activate nicotinic cholinergic receptors (RECEPTORS, NICOTINIC). Nicotinic agonists act at postganglionic nicotinic receptors, at neuroeffector junctions in the peripheral nervous system, and at nicotinic receptors in the central nervous system. Agents that function as neuromuscular depolarizing blocking agents are included here because they activate nicotinic receptors, although they are used clinically to block nicotinic transmission. Cholinergic Agonists, Nicotinic,Cholinergic Agonist, Nicotinic,Nicotinic Agonist,Agonist, Nicotinic,Agonist, Nicotinic Cholinergic,Agonists, Nicotinic,Agonists, Nicotinic Cholinergic,Nicotinic Cholinergic Agonist,Nicotinic Cholinergic Agonists

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