Publications by authors named "Lauren M McCue"
Background: Repeated cocaine use produces neuroadaptations that support drug craving and relapse in substance use disorders (SUDs). Powerful associations formed with drug-use environments can promote a return to active drug use in SUD patients, but the molecular mechanisms that control the formation of these prepotent drug-context associations remain unclear.
Methods: In the rat intravenous cocaine self-administration (SA) model, we examined the role and regulation of histone deacetylase 5 (HDAC5) in the prelimbic (PrL) and infralimbic (IL) cortices in context-associated drug seeking.
Article Synopsis
- - Opioid use creates strong associations between drug reward and environmental cues, which can lead to relapse in recovering individuals.
- - The study focused on the role of HDAC5, an epigenetic enzyme, in regulating behaviors associated with heroin seeking, particularly in the nucleus accumbens, a key region in the brain.
- - Findings indicate that HDAC5 helps limit relapse by suppressing cue-induced and drug-primed heroin-seeking behaviors without affecting responses to other rewards like sucrose, suggesting it modulates specific neuronal responses related to addiction.