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Analysis of Dendritic Spine Morphology in Cultured CNS Neurons

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Published on: July 13, 2011

Caveolin-1 regulates medium spiny neuron structural and functional plasticity.

Katherine R Tonn Eisinger^1,2,3, Andrew D Chapp¹, Samuel P Swanson¹

¹Department of Neuroscience, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, 55455, USA.

Psychopharmacology

|June 4, 2020

Summary

This summary is machine-generated.

Caveolin-1 (CAV1) is crucial for neuronal plasticity and drug-induced behavioral changes in the nucleus accumbens. Its absence disrupts cocaine-related plasticity and sensitization.

Keywords:

Behavioral sensitization Caveolin Cocaine Neuronal plasticity Nucleus accumbens

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Transmission Electron Microscopy as the Visualization Technique for Analysis of Circadian Synaptic Plasticity in the Mouse Barrel Cortex

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Published on: August 19, 2025

Area of Science:

Neuroscience
Molecular Biology
Addiction Research

Background:

Caveolin-1 (CAV1) is a structural protein vital for organizing neuronal signaling molecules.
The role of CAV1 in long-lasting neuronal plasticity is not well understood.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate the impact of CAV1 knockout (KO) on functional plasticity, specifically drug-induced plasticity in the nucleus accumbens (NAc).
To determine if CAV1 deficiency affects cocaine-induced changes in medium spiny neuron (MSN) excitability and locomotor sensitization.

Main Methods:

Examined NAc MSN morphology in a striatal/cortical co-culture system.
Performed whole-cell patch-clamp recordings in vivo to assess electrophysiological properties and cocaine effects.
Evaluated locomotor sensitization in CAV1 KO and wild-type animals.

Main Results:

CAV1 deficiency altered MSN structural morphology, increasing dendritic arborization.
CAV1 KO animals showed a loss of cocaine-induced firing rate depression in NAc MSNs.
Behaviorally, CAV1 KO mice exhibited a lack of cocaine-mediated locomotor sensitization.

Conclusions:

Nucleus accumbens CAV1 plays a critical role in neuronal plasticity associated with drug of abuse administration.
CAV1 is essential for the development of behavioral adaptations to chronic cocaine exposure.