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Addiction vulnerability trait impacts complex movement control: Evidence from sign-trackers
Aaron Kucinski1, Cindy Lustig1, Martin Sarter1
1Department of Psychology and Neuroscience Program, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA.
Behavioural Brain Research
|April 30, 2018
Summary
Sign-tracking (ST) behavior in rats, linked to addiction risk, also shows impaired motor control and increased falls. This suggests cognitive-cholinergic traits impact both addiction vulnerability and movement, highlighting a link between attention and fall risk.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Behavioral Neuroscience
- Addiction Research
Background:
- Cognitive-motivational vulnerability traits increase susceptibility to substance addiction and relapse.
- Sign-tracking (ST) behavior in rats is linked to poor attentional control, cholinergic system dysfunction, and higher addiction risk.
- Poor attentional control and cholinergic deficits are also associated with increased fall risk in Parkinson's disease.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate if the attentional deficits in sign-tracking (ST) rats extend to complex motor control and propensity for falls.
- To determine if ST rats exhibit greater fall frequency compared to goal-tracking (GT) rats in motor tasks.
- To explore the relationship between cognitive control strategies and motor performance in ST and GT rats.
Main Methods:
- Rats exhibiting sign-tracking (ST) and goal-tracking (GT) behaviors were compared on motor tasks involving rotating rods (straight and zig-zag).
- Fall frequency was recorded during rod traversal, with and without a secondary cognitive task to tax attentional control.
- Movement strategies and avoidance behaviors were analyzed during complex motor challenges.
Main Results:
- Sign-tracking (ST) rats fell significantly more often than goal-tracking (GT) rats on both straight and zig-zag rotating rods.
- ST rats demonstrated increased falls when performing the motor task alongside a secondary cognitive task, mirroring human fallers.
- GT rats employed superior top-down control strategies, avoiding risky sections of the zig-zag rod more effectively.
Conclusions:
- The cognitive-cholinergic deficits associated with sign-tracking (ST) behavior impair complex motor control and increase fall risk.
- Impairments in the cognitive-motor interface may be a common comorbidity in addiction vulnerability.
- Sign-tracking (ST) behavior represents an endophenotype potentially increasing risk for diverse neurobehavioral disorders, including those involving motor control deficits.
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