Acute Morphine Administration Research Articles

The effcacy of intranasal leptin for opioid induced respiratory depression depends on sex and obesity state

Opioid-induced respiratory depression (OIRD) is the primary cause of death associated with opioids and individuals with obesity are particularly susceptible due to comorbid obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). Repeated exposure to opioids, as in the case of pain management, results in diminished therapeutic effect and/or the need for higher doses to maintain the same effect. With limited means to address the negative impact of repeated exposure it is critical to develop drugs that prevent deaths induced by opioids without reducing beneficial analgesia. We have previously shown that intranasal (IN) leptin can reverse apneas, hypoventilation, and upper airway obstruction while enhancing analgesia following acute morphine administration in obese males. Here we hypothesize that OIRD as a result of chronic opioid use can be attenuated by administration of IN leptin while also maintaining analgesia in both lean mice and mice with diet-induced obesity (DIO) of both sexes. To test this hypothesis, an opioid tolerance protocol was developed and a model of OIRD in mice chronically receiving morphine and tolerant to morphine analgesia was established. Subsequently, sleep and breathing were recorded by barometric plethysmography in four experimental groups: obese male, obese female, lean male, and lean female following acute administration of IN leptin. Operant behavioral assays were used to determine the impact of IN leptin on the analgesic effcacy of morphine. Acute administration of IN leptin significantly attenuated OIRD in DIO male mice decreasing the apnea index by 58.9% and apnea time by 60.1%. In lean mice leptin was ineffective. Morphine caused a complete loss of temperature aversion which was not reduced by intranasal leptin indicating IN leptin does not decrease morphine analgesia. We conclude that IN leptin is ineffective in lean mice but prevents OIRD in obesity by increasing hypercapnic sensitivity when leptin resistance at the blood brain barrier is present without reducing analgesia. This work was supported by funding from the National Institutes of Health: R01NS112266 (AL), R01HL128970, R61HL156240, R41DA056239 (VYP), and T32HL110952 (MLS). This is the full abstract presented at the American Physiology Summit 2024 meeting and is only available in HTML format. There are no additional versions or additional content available for this abstract. Physiology was not involved in the peer review process.

Model of negative affect induced by withdrawal from acute and chronic morphine administration in male mice

Opioid use disorder (OUD) is a chronic relapsing disorder that is a major burden for the lives of affected individuals, and society as a whole. Opioid withdrawal is characterized by strong physical symptoms, along with signs of negative affect. Negative affect due to opioid withdrawal is a major obstacle to recovery and relapse prevention. The mechanisms behind negative affect due to either spontaneous or antagonist-precipitated opioid withdrawal are not well known, and more animal models need be developed. Here, we present behavioral models of negative affect upon naloxone-precipitated morphine withdrawal in adult male mice. Social, anxiety, and despair-like deficits were investigated following naloxone administration in mice receiving morphine under three dosing regimens; acute, chronic constant dose and chronic escalating doses. Social behaviour in the three-chamber social preference test was decreased following withdrawal from chronic and escalating but not acute morphine. Anxiety-like behaviour in the open field was increased for all three treatments. Despair-like behaviour was increased following withdrawal from chronic and escalating but not acute morphine. Altogether, these animal models will contribute to study behavioural and neuronal circuitries involved in the several negative affective signs characterizing OUD.

Loss of Astrocytic µ Opioid Receptors Exacerbates Aversion Associated with Morphine Withdrawal in Mice: Role of Mitochondrial Respiration.

Astrocytes express mu/µ opioid receptors, but the function of these receptors remains poorly understood. We evaluated the effects of astrocyte-restricted knockout of µ opioid receptors on reward- and aversion-associated behaviors in mice chronically exposed to morphine. Specifically, one of the floxed alleles of the Oprm1 gene encoding µ opioid receptor 1 was selectively deleted from brain astrocytes in Oprm1 inducible conditional knockout (icKO) mice. These mice did not exhibit changes in locomotor activity, anxiety, or novel object recognition, or in their responses to the acute analgesic effects of morphine. Oprm1 icKO mice displayed increased locomotor activity in response to acute morphine administration but unaltered locomotor sensitization. Oprm1 icKO mice showed normal morphine-induced conditioned place preference but exhibited stronger conditioned place aversion associated with naloxone-precipitated morphine withdrawal. Notably, elevated conditioned place aversion lasted up to 6 weeks in Oprm1 icKO mice. Astrocytes isolated from the brains of Oprm1 icKO mice had unchanged levels of glycolysis but had elevated oxidative phosphorylation. The basal augmentation of oxidative phosphorylation in Oprm1 icKO mice was further exacerbated by naloxone-precipitated withdrawal from morphine and, similar to that for conditioned place aversion, was still present 6 weeks later. Our findings suggest that µ opioid receptors in astrocytes are linked to oxidative phosphorylation and they contribute to long-term changes associated with opioid withdrawal.

Intranasal Leptin Prevents Opioid-Induced Respiratory Depression in Obese, Opioid Tolerant Mice

Opioid-induced respiratory depression (OIRD) is the primary cause of death associated with opioids and individuals with obesity are particularly susceptible due to comorbid obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). Repeated exposure to opioids, as in the case of pain management, results in diminished therapeutic effect and/or the need for higher doses to maintain the same effect. With limited means to address the negative impact of repeated exposure it is critical to develop drugs that prevent deaths induced by opioids without reducing beneficial analgesia or causing withdrawal symptoms. We have previously shown that intranasal (IN) leptin can reverse apneas, hypoventilation, and upper airway obstruction while enhancing analgesia following acute morphine administration. Here we hypothesize that OIRD as a result of chronic opioid use can be attenuated by administration of IN leptin without acute withdrawal while also maintaining analgesia in both lean mice and mice with diet-induced obesity (DIO). To test this hypothesis, an opioid tolerance protocol was developed and a model of OIRD in mice chronically receiving morphine and tolerant to morphine analgesia was established. Subsequently, sleep and breathing were recorded by barometric plethysmography following acute or chronic administration of IN leptin. Operant behavioral assays and Pavlovian conditioning procedures were used to determine the impact of IN leptin on the analgesic efficacy of morphine and opioid withdrawal symptoms. Acute administration of IN leptin significantly attenuated OIRD in DIO male mice decreasing the apnea index by 58.9% and apnea time by 60.1%. In lean mice leptin was ineffective. Chronic IN leptin induced > 50% reduction in the OIRD in morphine tolerant DIO male mice suggesting the protective effect of leptin remained after the two-week treatment. Morphine caused a complete loss of temperature aversion which was not reduced by intranasal leptin indicating IN leptin does not decrease morphine analgesia. IN leptin did not modify naloxone conditional place aversion or naloxone withdrawal symptoms, suggesting that IN treatment does not induce opioid withdrawal. We conclude that IN leptin is ineffective in lean mice but prevents OIRD in obesity by increasing hypercapnic sensitivity when leptin resistance at the BBB is present without reducing analgesia or inducing withdrawal. NIH R61HL156240; NIH R01HL128970; NIH R41DA056239 This is the full abstract presented at the American Physiology Summit 2023 meeting and is only available in HTML format. There are no additional versions or additional content available for this abstract. Physiology was not involved in the peer review process.

Changes in Plasma Metabolic Signature upon Acute and Chronic Morphine Administration in Morphine-Tolerant Mice

Morphine administration causes system-level metabolic changes. Here, we show that morphine-tolerant mice exhibited distinct plasma metabolic signatures upon acute and chronic administration. We utilized a mouse model of morphine tolerance by exposing mice to increasing doses of the drug over 4 days. We collected plasma samples from mice undergoing acute or chronic morphine or saline injections and analyzed them using targeted GC-MS-based metabolomics to profile approximately 80 metabolites involved in the central carbon, amino acid, nucleotide, and lipid metabolism. Our findings reveal distinct alterations in plasma metabolite concentrations in response to acute or chronic morphine intake, and these changes were linked to the development of tolerance to morphine's analgesic effects. We identified several metabolites that had been differentially affected by acute versus chronic morphine use, suggesting that metabolic changes may be mitigated by prolonged exposure to the drug. Morphine-tolerant mice showed a restoration of amino acid and glycolytic metabolites. Additionally, we conducted reconstructed metabolic network analysis on the first 30 VIP-ranked metabolites from the PLSDA of the saline, acute, and morphine-tolerant mice groups, which uncovered four interaction networks involving the amino acid metabolism, the TCA cycle, the glutamine-phenylalanine-tyrosine pathway, and glycolysis. These pathways were responsible for the metabolic differences observed following distinct morphine administration regimens. Overall, this study provides a valuable resource for future investigations into the role of metabolites in morphine-induced analgesia and associated effects following acute or chronic use in mice.

Adolescence as a critical period for nandrolone-induced muscular strength in relation to abuse liability, alone and in conjunction with morphine, using accumbal dopamine efflux in freely moving rats.

Nandrolone, an anabolic androgenic steroid, is included in the prohibited list of the World Anti-Doping Agency. Drugs of abuse activate brain dopamine neurons and nandrolone has been suspected of inducing dependence. Accordingly, possible critical periods for the effects of nandrolone on muscular strength and dopaminergic activity have been investigated, including the effects of chronically administered nandrolone alone and on morphine-induced increases in dopamine efflux in the nucleus accumbens. Six- or 10-week-old male Sprague-Dawley rats were used. Treatment with nandrolone was initiated in adolescent (6-week-old) and young adult (10-week-old) rats. Nandrolone (5.0 mg/kg s.c.) or sesame oil vehicle was given once daily, on six consecutive days per week, for 3 weeks and then once per day for 4 consecutive days. Nandrolone enhanced the developmental increase in grip strength of 6- but not 10-week-old rats, without altering the developmental increase in body weight of either age group. Using in vivo microdialysis in freely moving 6-week-old rats given nandrolone for 4 weeks, basal accumbal dopamine efflux was unaltered, while the increase in dopamine efflux induced by acute administration of morphine (1.0 mg/kg s.c.) was reduced. The present study provides in vivo evidence that adolescence constitutes a critical period during which repeated administration of nandrolone enhances increases in muscular strength without influencing increases in body weight. Though repeated administration of nandrolone during this period of adolescence did not stimulate in vivo mesolimbic dopaminergic activity, it disrupted stimulation by an opioid, the drug class that is most commonly coabused with nandrolone.

Regulation of body weight and food intake by AGRP neurons during opioid dependence and abstinence in mice.

Dysregulation of body weight maintenance and opioid dependence are often treated as independent disorders. Here, we assessed the effects of both acute and long-term administration of morphine with and without chemogenetic activation of agouti-related peptide (AGRP)-expressing neurons in the arcuate nucleus (ARCAGRP neurons) to elucidate whether morphine and neuronal activation affect feeding behavior and body weight. First, we characterized interactions of opioids and energy deficit in wild-type mice. We observed that opioid administration attenuated both fasting-induced refeeding and ghrelin-stimulated feeding. Moreover, antagonism of opioid receptors blocked fasting-induced refeeding behavior. Next, we interfaced chemogenetics with opioid dependence. For chemogenetic experiments of ARCAGRP neurons, we conducted a priori behavioral qualification and post-mortem FOS immunostaining verification of arcuate activation following ARCAGRP chemogenetic activation. We administered clozapine during short-term and long-term morphine administration paradigms to determine the effects of dependence on food intake and body weight. We found that morphine occluded feeding behavior characteristic of chemogenetic activation of ARCAGRP neurons. Notably, activation of ARCAGRP neurons attenuated opioid-induced weight loss but did not evoke weight gain during opioid dependence. Consistent with these findings, we observed that morphine administration did not block fasting-induced activation of the ARC. Together, these results highlight the strength of opioidergic effects on body weight maintenance and demonstrate the utility of ARCAGRP neuron manipulations as a lever to influence energy balance throughout the development of opioid dependence.

Acute morphine administration, morphine dependence, and naloxone-induced withdrawal syndrome affect the resting-state functional connectivity and Local Field Potentials of the rat prefrontal cortex

Opiates are among the widely abused substances worldwide. Also, the clinical use of opioids can cause unwanted and potentially severe consequences such as developing tolerance and dependence. This study simultaneously measured the changes induced after morphine dependence and naloxone-induced withdrawal syndrome on the resting-state functional connectivity (rsFC) and Local Field Potential (LFP) power in the prefrontal cortex of the rat. The obtained results revealed that acute morphine administration significantly increased the LFP power in all frequency bands, as well as the rsFC strength of the prefrontal cortex, and naloxone injection reversed this effect. In contrast, chronic morphine administration reduced neural activity and general correlation values in intrinsic signals, as well as the LFP power in all frequency bands. In morphine-dependent rats, after each morphine administration, the LFP power in all frequency bands and the rsFC strength of the prefrontal cortex were increased, and these effects were further enhanced after naloxone precipitated withdrawal syndrome. The present study concludes that general correlation merely reflects the field activity of the local cortices imaged.

Role of Acetaldehyde in Ethanol Reversal of Tolerance to Morphine-Induced Respiratory Depression in Mice.

BackgroundOpioid users regularly consume other drugs such as alcohol (ethanol). Acute administration of ethanol rapidly reverses tolerance to morphine-induced respiratory depression. However, recent research has suggested that the primary metabolite of ethanol, acetaldehyde, may play a key role in mediating the CNS effects seen after ethanol consumption. This research investigated the role of acetaldehyde in ethanol reversal of tolerance to morphine-induced respiratory depression.MethodsTolerance was induced in mice by 6-days implantation of a 75 mg morphine pellet with control mice implanted with a placebo pellet. Tolerance was assessed by acute morphine administration on day 6 and respiration measured by plethysmography. Levels of acetaldehyde were inhibited or enhanced by pre-treatments with the acetaldehyde chelator D-penicillamine and the inhibitor of acetaldehyde dehydrogenase disulfiram respectively.ResultsMorphine pellet implanted mice displayed tolerance to an acute dose of morphine compared to placebo pellet implanted controls. Acute acetaldehyde administration dose-dependently reversed tolerance to morphine respiratory depression. As previously demonstrated, ethanol reversed morphine tolerance, and this was inhibited by D-penicillamine pre-treatment. An acute, low dose of ethanol that did not significantly reverse morphine tolerance was able to do so following disulfiram pre-treatment.ConclusionThese data suggest that acetaldehyde, the primary metabolite of ethanol, is responsible for the reversal of morphine tolerance observed following ethanol administration.

Opioids, plasticity and phrenic motor performance: investigating the off-target effects of acute morphine administration.

Opioids, plasticity and phrenic motor performance: investigating the off-target effects of acute morphine administration.

Mu-opioid receptor agonism differentially alters social behaviour and immediate early gene expression in male adolescent rats prenatally exposed to valproic acid versus controls

Mu-opioid receptors (MOPs) mediate and modulate social reward and social interaction. However, few studies have examined the functionality of this system in rodent models of social impairment. Deficits in social motivation and cognition are observed in rodents following pre-natal exposure to the anti-epileptic valproic acid (VPA), however it is not known whether MOP functionality is altered in these animals. The present study examined the effects of acute administration of the prototypical MOP agonist morphine (1 mg/kg) on social behavioural responding in the 3-chamber test and immediate early gene expression in adolescent rats (postnatal day 28–43) prenatally exposed to VPA vs saline-exposed controls. Pharmacokinetic analysis of morphine concentration, MOP binding and expression were also examined. The data revealed that sociability and social novelty preference in the 3-chamber test were reduced in rats prenatally exposed to VPA compared to saline-exposed control counterparts. Morphine reduced both sociability and social novelty preference behaviour in saline-, but not VPA-, exposed rats. Analysis of immediate early gene expression revealed that morphine reduced the expression of cfos in the prefrontal cortex of both saline- and VPA-exposed rats and reduced expression of cfos and junb in the hippocampus of VPA-exposed rats only. Pharmacokinetic analysis revealed similar concentrations of morphine in the plasma and brain of both saline- and VPA-exposed rats and similar thalamic MOP occupancy levels. Gene and protein expression of MOP in prefrontal cortex and hippocampus did not differ between saline and VPA-exposed rats. These data indicate differential effects of morphine on social responding and immediate early gene expression in the hippocampus of VPA-exposed rats compared with saline-exposed controls. This study provides support for altered MOP functionality in rats prenatally exposed to VPA, which may underlie the social deficits observed in the model.

Early life maternal deprivation attenuates morphine induced inhibition in lateral paragigantocellularis neurons in adult rats

Early life stress can serve as one of the principle sources leading to individual differences in confronting challenges throughout the lifetime. Maternal deprivation (MD), a model of early life stress, can cause persistent alterations in brain function, and it may constitute a risk factor for later incidence of drug addiction. It is becoming more apparent that early life MD predisposes opiate abuse in adulthood. Although several behavioral and molecular studies have addressed this issue, changes in electrophysiological features of the neurons are yet to be understood. The lateral paragigantocellularis (LPGi) nucleus, which participates in the mediation of opiate dependence and withdrawal, may be susceptible to modifications following MD. This study sought to find whether early life MD can alter the discharge activity of LPGi neurons and their response to acute morphine administration in adult rats.Male Wistar rats experienced MD on postnatal days (PNDs) 1–14 for three h per day. Afterward, they were left undisturbed until PND 70, during which the extracellular activities of LPGi neurons were recorded in anesthetized animals at baseline and in response to acute morphine.In both MD and control groups, acute morphine administration induced heterogeneous (excitatory, inhibitory, and no effect) responses in LPGi neurons. At baseline recording, the interspike interval variability of the LPGi neurons was attenuated in both inhibitory and excitatory responses in animals with the history of MD. The extent of morphine-induced discharge inhibition was also lower in deprived animals compared to the control group.These findings suggest that early life MD induces long-term alterations in LPGi neuronal activity in response to acute administration of morphine. Therefore, the MD may alter the vulnerability to develop opiate abuse in adulthood.

Paternal exposure to morphine during adolescence potentiates morphine withdrawal in male offspring: Involvement of the lateral paragigantocellularis nucleus.

Opiate exposure during adolescence perturbs the brain's maturation process and potentially confers long-term adverse consequences, not only in exposed individuals but also in their posterity. Here, we investigate the outcomes of adolescent paternal morphine exposure on morphine withdrawal profile in male offspring. Male Wistar rats were chronically subjected to 10 days of an escalating regimen of morphine during adolescence. After a 20-day washout period, adult males were allowed to copulate with naïve females. The adult male offspring were tested for somatic and affective components of naloxone-precipitated morphine withdrawal using conditioned place aversion. Moreover, electrical activity of the lateral paragigantocellularis (LPGi) nucleus, which is involved in development of opiate dependence, was recorded in response to a challenge dose of morphine via extracellular single-unit recordings. Morphine-sired offspring exhibited augmented expression of naloxone-induced somatic and affective signs of opiate withdrawal compared to the control saline-sired counterparts. In vivo recording revealed that LPGi neurons displayed heterogeneous responses (inhibitory, excitatory, and no change) to acute morphine administration in both morphine- and saline-sired animals. The morphine-induced discharge inhibition was potentiated in morphine-sired offspring. However, the extent of discharge excitation in response to morphine did not reach significance in these subjects. Moreover, the lack of alteration in maternal behavior toward morphine-sired offspring indicates that this is due to germline-dependent transmission of epigenetic traits across generations. Preconception paternal exposure to morphine during adolescence potentiates opiate withdrawal signs in male offspring which is mediated, at least in part, by epigenetic alteration of LPGi-related brain circuitry.

CaMKII is activated in opioid induced conditioned place preference, but αCaMKII Thr286 autophosphorylation is not necessary for its establishment

Activation of calcium/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase II (CaMKII), particularly its α isoform, is known to be important for neuronal processes central for learning and memory and has also been implicated in the maladaptive learning involved in drug addiction.Thr286 autophosphorylation of αCaMKII has been shown to be indispensable for establishment of cocaine-induced CPP (Easton et al., 2014). To study the contribution of CaMKII in opioid induced conditioned learning, we examined how establishment of conditioned place preference (CPP) induced by 10 or 30 μmol/kg morphine or its active metabolite morphine-6-glucuronide (M6G) affects the levels and Thr286 autophosphorylation of the α- and β-isoforms of CaMKII, as well as β-actin levels, in dorsal and ventral striatum and in hippocampus of mice. An acute and a sub-chronic treatment were used as controls. Whereas an acute single administration of morphine or M6G caused increases in CaMKII levels and phosphorylation at Thr286 and β-actin in striatal areas, CPP induced by these opioids was accompanied primarily by an increase in the protein levels of both CaMKII isoforms and β-actin in dorsal striatum and hippocampus. Decreases in CaMKII Thr286 phosphorylation were observed in dorsal striatum after the sub-chronic pharmacological treatment. Despite the changes observed in αCaMKII activity in wild type mice, morphine-induced CPP was not affected in αCaMKIIT286A autophosphorylation-deficient mice. These results indicate that opioid-induced CPP is accompanied by activation of α- and βCaMKII in striatum and hippocampus, but, in opposition to what has been observed with cocaine, αCaMKII autophosphorylation is not essential for establishment of opioid-induced CPP.

Hemantane a Derivative of Aminoadamantane Alleviates Morphine-Induced Hyperlocomotion via Modulation of Activity of the Dopaminergic and Serotonergic Systems

Abstract—Morphine is known to induce a long-term hyperlocomotor response due to increased dopamine release in the nucleus accumbens via the activation of dopaminergic neurons in the ventral tegmental area. It has been demonstrated that the low-affinity antagonist of NMDA receptors hemantane can alleviate ethanol-induced stimulation of behavior due to its effect on the dopamine- and noradrenergic systems. In the present study, we studied the effects of the aminoadamantane derivative hemantane on the changes in the balance of monoamines and their metabolites in brain structures of C57Bl/6 mice after acute morphine administration. Single i.p. administration of hemantane at a dose of 20 mg/kg did not affect spontaneous locomotor activity per se but alleviated behavior stimulated by s.c. morphine injection at a dose of 20 mg/kg (p < 0.05). In the ex vivo experiments, hemantane prevented a morphine-induced significant increase in the DOPAC/DA and 5‑HIAA/5-HT ratios in the striatum (both p < 0.05) and HVA/DA in the nucleus accumbens (p < 0.01) and promoted the recovery of the DOPAC/DA ratio to the control level in the hypothalamus. These data demonstrate the capability of hemantane to inhibit morphine-induced behavioral stimulation, probably via modulation of the dopaminergic and serotonergic systems.

Efficacy of multimodal analgesic treatment of severe traumatic acute pain in mice pretreated with chronic high dose of buprenorphine inducing mechanical allodynia

Managing severe acute nociceptive pain in buprenorphine-maintained individuals for opioid use disorder management is challenging owing to the high affinity and very slow dissociation of buprenorphine from μ-opioid receptors that hinders the use of full agonist opioid analgesics.In a translational approach, the aim of this study was to use an animal setting to investigate the effects of a chronic high dose of buprenorphine treatment on nociceptive thresholds before and after applying a severe acute nociceptive traumatic surgery stimulus and to screen postoperative pharmacological analgesic strategies.A chronic treatment of mice with a high dose of buprenorphine (BUP HD, 2 × 200 μg/kg/day; i.p.) revealed significant mechanical allodynia. One and two days after having discontinued buprenorphine administration and having induced a severe nociceptive acute pain by a closed tibial fracture, acute administration of morphine at a dose which has analgesic effects in absence of pretreatment (4.5 mg/kg; i.p.), was ineffective to reduce pain in the BUP HD group. However, mimicking multimodal analgesia strategy used in human postoperative context, the combination of morphine (administered at the same dose) with a NMDA receptor antagonist (ketamine) or an NSAID (ketoprofen) produced antinociceptive responses in these animals.The mouse model of closed tibial fracture could be useful to identify analgesic strategies of postoperative pain for patients with chronic exposure to opioids and suffering from hyperalgesia.

Role of Opioid System in Empathy-like Behaviours in Rats.

BackgroundEmpathy is defined as the ability to simulate the mental states of others. Recent studies have demonstrated empathy-like behaviors in other animals including rats and mice. The objective of the current study was to evaluate the effect of acute administration of morphine and naloxone on cognition and nociception changes following observing conspecifics undergoing nociceptive stimulus.MethodsAdult male Wistar rats were used (n = 8 for each group). One cagemate received formalin injection into the hindpaw five times within a nine-day period and the other cagemate observed the pain while being pretreated with saline, morphine, or naloxone [10 mg/kg, intraperitoneal (i.p.)]. Pain behaviors, anxiety-like behaviour, locomotion, balance and muscle strength were evaluated in the observer animals.FindingsObserving a cagemate in pain increased anxiety-like behavior and reduced thermal pain threshold in the observer animals. Administration of morphine reversed these effects and naloxone did not affect the responses.ConclusionResults of the current study reveal an important role for opioid receptors (ORs) in empathy for pain, so that activation of this system dampens the empathy-like responses.

NGF, BDNF and Arc mRNA Expression in the Hippocampus of Rats After Administration of Morphine.

Morphine can influence immediate early genes (IEG) of activity-regulated cytoskeletal-associated protein (Arc) and brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) which are activated in response to physiological stimuli during learning, as well as the nerve growth factor (NGF) gene which increases the expression of several IEGs for memory formation. The purpose of the current study was first to evaluate the effect of acute (1-day) and subchronic (15-days) morphine administration on memory retrieval of rats and second to determine the hippocampal expression of NGF, BDNF and Arc genes as potential contributors in the observed effects in each setting. The effects of morphine (intraperitoneal, 10, 15 and 20mg/kg) on memory function and gene expression were assessed using inhibitory avoidance test and real-time polymerase chain reaction, respectively. We found that a single dose of morphine at the highest dose of 20mg/kg decreases the post-training step-through-latency, while repeated administration of the same dose for 15 successive days increases this indicator of memory retrieval. We did not detect a significant change in the hippocampal expression of Arc, BDNF or NGF genes after a single episode of morphine treatment. However, subchronic morphine administration (15 and 20mg/kg) increased the expression of Arc and BDNF genes in a dose dependent manner. A higher mRNA expression for the NGF was observed at the higher dose of 20mg/kg. We hypothesize that the subchronic effects were morphine-induced behavioral sensitization which may have been enhanced through increased hippocampal Arc expression.

Unidirectional opioid-cannabinoid cross-tolerance in the modulation of social play behavior in rats.

The endocannabinoid and the endogenous opioid systems interact in the modulation of social play behavior, a highly rewarding social activity abundantly expressed in young mammals. Prolonged exposure to opioid or cannabinoid receptor agonists induces cross-tolerance or cross-sensitization to their acute behavioral effects. Behavioral and biochemical experiments were performed to investigate whether cross-tolerance or cross-sensitization occurs to the play-enhancing effects of cannabinoid and opioid drugs on social play behavior, and the possible brain substrate involved. The play-enhancing effects induced by systemic administration of JZL184, which inhibits the hydrolysis of the endocannabinoid 2-AG, were suppressed in animals repeatedly pretreated with the opioid receptor agonist morphine. Conversely, acute morphine administration increased social play in rats pretreated with vehicle or with either JZL184 or the cannabinoid agonist WIN55,212-2. Acute administration of JZL184 increased the activation of both CB1 receptors and their effector Akt in the nucleus accumbens and prefrontal cortex, brain regions important for the expression of social play. These effects were absent in animals pretreated with morphine. Furthermore, only animals repeatedly treated with morphine and acutely administered with JZL184 showed reduced activation of CB1 receptors and Akt in the amygdala. The present study demonstrates a dynamic opioid-cannabinoid interaction in the modulation of social play behavior, occurring in limbic brain areas strongly implicated in social play behavior. A better understanding of opioid-cannabinoid interactions in social play contributes to clarify neurobiological aspects of social behavior at young age, which may provide new therapeutic targets for social dysfunctions.

Sex differences in hedonic and homeostatic aspects of palatable food motivation

Feeding behaviors can be modified via homeostatic and hedonic mechanisms. Homeostasis, while primarily concerned with maintaining energy balance via food consumption and energy expenditure, can alter food reward and motivation in response to food deprivation. Alternatively, reward and motivation of food is also driven by its palatability or hedonic nature, and this process can be augmented by opioid receptor activation. The present study examined sex differences in the motivational properties of sucrose pellets through manipulation of homeostatic and hedonic processes via acute food deprivation and acute systemic administration of morphine, respectively. The results showed that regardless of sex, systemic injections of morphine did not alter the motivation to obtain a sucrose pellet on a progressive ratio schedule of reinforcement but does significantly increase consumption of sucrose pellets when freely available. Male and female rats demonstrated similar increased consumption of sucrose pellets under free feeding conditions following acute (24-hours) food deprivation, compared to the non-deprived conditions. Overall, the findings from these experiments indicate that female rats work harder in order to obtain a sucrose pellet (under a Progressive Ratio (PR) schedule of reinforcement) and consume more sucrose pellets than males. However, while acute morphine administration causes similar increases on feeding in males and females, it does not alter motivation as measured by breakpoint on a PR schedule of reinforcement.