Insular cortex and reinstatement of nicotine seeking behavior

描述(申请人提供)：品味对吸烟行为有深远的影响。最重要的是，吸食香料香烟的人复发的几率更高。味觉和其他内脏感觉信息在岛叶皮质进行处理和整合。中风患者的岛叶皮质受损导致立即戒烟，没有复发，也没有持续的吸烟冲动。因此，本方案的首要目标是建立一种静脉注射的青春期动物模型。尼古丁自我给药，以舔食为操作行为，以新颖的味道为条件性刺激。在第二个目标中，我们将检验这样的假设，即味觉、听觉和视觉线索在恢复尼古丁寻找行为时激活了岛叶皮质的共同亚区。这项提议适用于CEBRA项目，不仅是因为它旨在建立一个包含偶然味觉线索的创新药物SA模型，更重要的是，它测试了一个非常新颖和重要的假说，而这个假说缺乏先例或初步数据。如果得到证实，这将对目前人们对吸毒复发所涉及的大脑回路的想法产生重大影响。公共卫生相关性：复发是治疗尼古丁成瘾的主要问题。将建立一种带有味觉提示的自愿尼古丁摄取的动物模型，以探索岛叶皮质在吸烟复发中的作用。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Taste has profound effects on smoking behavior. Most importantly, smokers of flavored cigarette have higher odds for relapse. Gustatory and other visceral sensory information are processed and integrated in the insular cortex. Damaging of insular cortex in stroke patients resulted in immediate quitting of smoking, without relapse, and without persistence of the urge to smoke. Therefore, the first aim of this proposal is to establish an adolescent animal model of i.v. nicotine self-administration using licking as the operant behavior and a novel taste as the conditioned stimulus. In the second aim, we will test the hypothesis that gustatory, audio and visual cues activate common subregions of the insular cortex during reinstatement of nicotine seeking behavior. This proposal is suited for the CEBRA program not only because it aims to establish an innovative drug SA model that incorporates contingent gustatory cue, but, more importantly, because it tests a highly novel and significant hypothesis, which there is scant precedent or preliminary data. If confirmed, this would have a substantial impact on current thinking of the brain circuitry involved in relapse to drug abuse. PUBLIC HEALTH RELEVANCE: Relapse is a major problem in treating nicotine addiction. An animal model of voluntary nicotine consumption with a taste cue will be established to explore the role of insular cortex in relapse to smoking.