Self-administration in rats allowed unlimited access to nicotine

The purpose of the present study was to develop an animal model of nicotine self-administration that more closely approximates the conditions of human nicotine use than do existing models. In most nicotine self-administration models, rats acquire self-administration during brief daily sessions in wh...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Psychopharmacologia 1997-10, Vol.133 (3), p.300-304
Main Authors: VALENTINE, J. D, HOKANSON, J. S, MATTA, S. G, SHARP, B. M
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Animal models
Animals
Biological and medical sciences
Dose-Response Relationship, Drug
Drug dosages
Drug self-administration
Male
Medical sciences
Nicotine
Nicotine - administration & dosage
Nicotine - pharmacology
Nicotinic Agonists - administration & dosage
Nicotinic Agonists - pharmacology
Operant conditioning
Rats
Self Administration
Tobacco, tobacco smoking
Toxicology
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Summary:The purpose of the present study was to develop an animal model of nicotine self-administration that more closely approximates the conditions of human nicotine use than do existing models. In most nicotine self-administration models, rats acquire self-administration during brief daily sessions in which rapid injections of a relatively high dose of the drug, 0.03 mg/kg, serve as the reinforcer. The present study examined nicotine self-administration in rats that acquired the behavior while having virtually unlimited access to injections of a relatively low dose of the drug; the rats did not have any prior operant training or shaping. Under these conditions, rats readily acquire nicotine self-administration at doses at least as low as 0.00375 mg/kg per injection, and they self-administer throughout the active portion of their light cycle. The daily nicotine intake of rats, which ranged from 0.18 to 1.38 mg/kg per day, appears to be comparable to that of human smokers.
ISSN:0033-3158
1432-2072
DOI:10.1007/s002130050405