Functional connectivity in frontal-striatal brain networks and cocaine self-administration in female rhesus monkeys

Cocaine addiction is characterized by alternating cycles of abstinence and relapse and loss of control of drug use despite severe negative life consequences associated with its abuse.

The objective of the present study was to elucidate critical neural circuits involved in individual vulnerabilities to resumption of cocaine self-administration following prolonged abstinence.

The subjects were three female rhesus monkeys in prolonged abstinence following a long history of cocaine self-administration. Initial experiments examined the effects of acute cocaine administration (0.3 mg/kg, IV) on functional brain connectivity across the whole brain and in specific brain networks related to behavioral control using functional magnetic resonance imaging in fully conscious subjects. Subsequently, these subjects were allowed to resume cocaine self-administration to determine whether loss of basal connectivity within specific brain networks predicted the magnitude of resumption of cocaine intake following prolonged abstinence.

Acute cocaine administration robustly decreased global functional connectivity and selectively impaired top-down prefrontal circuits that control behavior, while sparing connectivity of striatal areas within limbic circuits. Importantly, impaired connectivity between prefrontal and striatal areas during abstinence predicted cocaine intake when these subjects were provided renewed access to cocaine.

Based on these findings, loss of prefrontal to striatal functional connectivity may be a critical mechanism underlying the negative downward spiral of cycles of abstinence and relapse that characterizes cocaine addiction.