Loading…
Dissociation of ethanol and saccharin preference in fosB knockout mice
The Fos family of transcription factors may play a key role in various forms of brain plasticity. Among different genes coding Fos proteins is the fosB gene. Protein products of the fosB gene are thought to be critically involved in neural adaptations produced by chronic treatment with drugs of abus...
Saved in:
Published in: | Physiology & behavior 2004-09, Vol.82 (2), p.391-395 |
---|---|
Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , , |
Format: | Article |
Language: | English |
Subjects: | |
Citations: | Items that cite this one |
Online Access: | Get full text |
Tags: |
Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
|
Summary: | The Fos family of transcription factors may play a key role in various forms of brain plasticity. Among different genes coding Fos proteins is the
fosB gene. Protein products of the
fosB gene are thought to be critically involved in neural adaptations produced by chronic treatment with drugs of abuse.
fosB gene transcription leads to accumulation of full-length FosB as well as its truncated form, Δ
fosB. Stable isoforms of Δ
fosB called chronic FRAs accumulate in the brain after chronic administration of various drugs of abuse. The purpose of the present study was to evaluate the role of the
fosB gene in two-bottle choice ethanol self-administration. For this aim, ethanol (2–8% v/v) intake and preference was assessed in
fosB mutant (
n=17) and wild-type (WT) mice (
n=16). For comparison, consumption of saccharin (0.05–0.8% w/v) and quinine (15–960 μM) solutions was assessed in the same animals. Ethanol preference in both groups varied from around 50% for the lowest to 20% for the highest ethanol concentration. Neither ethanol intake (g/kg) nor preference differed between the two genotypes. In contrast, saccharin preference, but not intake, was higher in the
fosB mutants. Only slight and inconsistent between-group differences were observed in terms of quinine preference. The present results suggest that permanent elimination of
fosB gene products does not alter ethanol intake but may enhance preference for sweet solutions in mice. |
---|---|
ISSN: | 0031-9384 1873-507X |
DOI: | 10.1016/j.physbeh.2004.04.054 |