Experimental Manipulations of Impulsivity: Effects on Gambling and Drug Taking

描述（由申请人提供）：延迟贴现描述了由于延迟而导致的后果（收益和损失）的贬值。大量文献表明，严重的延迟折扣（即延迟结果的极端贬值）与成瘾性疾病（如病理性赌博和药物滥用）相关。有待研究的是，实验产生的延迟贴现的变化是否会影响随后的赌博和吸毒。如果降低延迟结果的折扣程度会减少随后的成瘾活动，那么基于折扣的治疗和预防成瘾的新技术可能会得到有益的追求。在这篇新研究者RO1中，我们将在大鼠实验中操纵延迟折扣。在每一项实验中，我们都会让一组实验鼠接受长时间的训练，以减少这些老鼠对延迟食物奖励的折扣程度。对照组的大鼠将完成相同次数的训练，但不接受旨在减少折扣的训练。每一种训练方案，在急性实施时，都显著影响延迟折扣，但对这些方案的持久效果知之甚少，对它们影响随后成瘾相关行为的能力也一无所知。因此，在评估了每种训练方案对延迟折扣的影响之后，我们将比较实验大鼠和对照大鼠对赌博类奖励（相对于可预测的食物来源）和乙醇自我管理的偏好程度。如果实验诱导延迟折扣的减少也减少了与成瘾相关的行为，那么该项目将对与国家药物滥用研究所的使命相关的基础和应用研究具有重要意义。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Delay discounting describes the devaluation of consequences (gains and losses) because they are delayed. A large literature indicates that steep delay discounting (i.e., extreme devaluation of delayed outcomes) is correlated with addictive disorders such as pathological gambling and substance abuse. What has yet to be investigated is if experimentally produced changes in delay discounting can affect subsequent gambling and drug taking. If decreasing the degree to which delayed outcomes are discounted decreases subsequent addictive activities, then new discounting-based techniques for the treatment and prevention of addictions might gainfully be pursued. In this New Investigator RO1, we will experimentally manipulate delay discounting in rats. In each experiment this will be accomplished by exposing an experimental group of rats to an extended-duration training regimen designed to decrease the degree to which these rats discount delayed food rewards. A control group of rats will complete the same number of sessions but will not receive the training designed to decrease discounting. Each of the training regimens, when acutely administered, has significantly affected delay discounting, but little is known about the lasting effects of these regimens and nothing is known about their ability to affect subsequent addiction-related behavior. Thus, after the effects of each training regimen on delay discounting are assessed, we will compare experimental and control rats on how strongly they prefer gambling-like rewards (vs. predictable sources of food) and ethanol self administration. If experimentally induced decreases in delay discounting also decrease addiction-related behavior, then this project will have important implications for basic and applied research of relevance to the mission of the National Institute on Drug Abuse.