DIFFERENT CHRONIC COCAINE ADMINISTRATION PROTOCOLS INDUCE CHANGES ON DENTATE GYRUS PLASTICITY AND HIPPOCAMPAL DEPENDENT BEHAVIOUR

MARIELA F. PÉREZ.; LAURA GABACH,; ROMINA ALMIRON; VALERIA P CARLINI; SUSANA R BARIOGLIO,; OSCAR A RAMIREZ

SYNAPSE

WILEY-LISS, DIV JOHN WILEY & SONS INC

Año: 2010 vol. 64 p. 742 - 742

0887-4476

ippocampus is a limbic structure that participates in learning and memory formation. Specifically the dentate gyrus has been described as a hippocampal sub-region with high rates of plasticity and it is targeted by different psychoactive drugs modulating synaptic plasticity. Repeated cocaine administration induces sensitization to the locomotor effects and it is believed that sensitization involves the same mechanisms of drug seeking and relapse. Although, the mechanisms underlying sensitization is not fully understood. In the present work we investigated the impact of repeated intraperitoneal administration of cocaine (15 or 20 mg/kg/day along 5 or 15 days respectively; and 15 mg/kg/day along 5 day followed by a challenge dose after 3 days of withdrawal) on the dentate gyrus synaptic plasticity, differentiating between sensitized and non-sensitized rats. Furthermore, we correlated changes on the hippocampal synaptic plasticity to memory retention. Our results revealed that the preval