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A Protocol for Measuring Cue Reactivity in a Rat Model of Cocaine Use Disorder
Published on: June 18, 2018
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Basal Hippocampal Activity and Its Functional Connectivity Predicts Cocaine Relapse
Bryon Adinoff1, Hong Gu2, Carmen Merrick3
1Veterans Affairs North Texas Health Care System, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, Texas; Department of Psychiatry, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, Texas.
Biological Psychiatry
|March 10, 2015
Summary
Neuroimaging reveals that heightened activity in the left posterior hippocampus and its connection to the posterior cingulate cortex (PCC) can predict relapse in cocaine use disorder (CUD) patients. These brain changes indicate a propensity for reactivity to drug cues.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Addiction Research
- Medical Imaging
Background:
- Cocaine use disorder (CUD) is associated with neuroplastic changes that may increase relapse risk.
- Regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF) and resting-state functional connectivity (rsFC) can serve as biomarkers for neuronal activity and predict relapse.
- This study investigated alterations in rCBF and rsFC in patients with CUD to predict relapse after treatment.
Purpose of the Study:
- To assess alterations in regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF) and resting-state functional connectivity (rsFC) in patients with cocaine use disorder (CUD).
- To prospectively predict relapse in patients with CUD following treatment using neuroimaging markers.
- To identify specific brain regions and circuits associated with relapse risk in CUD.
Main Methods:
- Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) using pseudocontinuous arterial spin labeling and resting blood oxygen level-dependent (BOLD) sequences.
- Acquired data from abstinent CUD patients before treatment discharge and healthy controls.
- Assessed substance use post-discharge to define relapsed (n=22) and early remission (n=18) groups.
Main Results:
- Enhanced rCBF was observed in the left posterior hippocampus (pHp) of the relapsed group compared to early remission and control groups.
- Increased rsFC strength between the pHp and the posterior cingulate cortex (PCC)/precuneus was found in the relapsed group.
- Combined increased pHp rCBF and pHp-PCC rsFC predicted relapse with 75% accuracy at 30, 60, and 90 days post-treatment.
Conclusions:
- Heightened basal activity in the pHp and strengthened pHp-PCC circuit connectivity may indicate a propensity for reactivity to cocaine cues and ruminations in CUD patients at risk of relapse.
- These neurobiological markers could reflect underlying mechanisms driving relapse in CUD.
- Targeting hyperactivated brain regions and dysregulated neural circuits may offer therapeutic strategies for relapse prevention in CUD.
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