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Adolescent cocaine exposure causes enduring macroscale changes in mouse brain structure.

Anne L Wheeler¹, Jason P Lerch, M Mallar Chakravarty

¹Program in Neurosciences and Mental Health, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Canada.

The Journal of Neuroscience : the Official Journal of the Society for Neuroscience

|February 1, 2013

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Chronic cocaine exposure alters brain structure, particularly in adolescent mice, leading to persistent drug-seeking behaviors. These brain changes may contribute to addiction vulnerability.

Area of Science:

Neuroscience
Addiction Research
Developmental Neuroscience

Background:

Cocaine dependence is linked to human brain structural abnormalities.
The causal relationship between brain structure and cocaine use remains unclear.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate the impact of chronic cocaine exposure on brain structure and behavior in mice.
To determine if developmental timing of exposure influences these effects.

Main Methods:

Mice received daily cocaine or saline injections during adolescence or young adulthood.
Brain structure was analyzed using MRI and automated morphometry techniques.
Locomotor sensitization to cocaine was assessed after a period of abstinence.

Main Results:

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Cocaine exposure induced significant brain structural changes, most notably in adolescent-exposed mice.
Altered regions include the nucleus accumbens, striatum, and prefrontal cortex.
Adolescent cocaine exposure led to greater sensitization to cocaine's stimulant effects.

Conclusions:

Chronic cocaine exposure causes persistent alterations in brain structure.
These structural changes, especially following adolescent exposure, may underlie long-term addiction vulnerability.
Cocaine exposure is identified as the cause of observed morphological changes.