Effect of Bilateral 6-Hydroxydopamine Lesions of the Medial Forebrain Bundle on Reaction Time A.D
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Effect of Bilateral 6-Hydroxydopamine Lesions of the Medial Forebrain Bundle on Reaction Time A.D. Smith, Ph.D., M. Amalric, Ph.D., G.F. Koob, Ph.D., and M.J. Zigmond, Ph.D. Overt symptoms of Parkinson’s disease do not manifest week testing period and akinetic deficits expressed by an themselves until there is a substantial loss of the increase in delayed responding. In addition, larger DA dopaminergic nigrostriatal projection. However, as depletions (у95%) profoundly altered motor control with neuroprotective strategies are developed, it will be essential decreases in percent correct responses, increases in delayed to detect the disease in its preclinical phase. Performance on responses and increases in reaction time. These results conditioned reaction time tasks is known to be impaired by suggest that reaction time may be a relatively sensitive extensive 6-hydroxydopamine-induced lesions of the measure of preclinical or subtle deficits, although it might nigrostriatal dopamine pathway. However, the effect of be even more useful in quantitating the severity of depletion smaller lesions on a reaction time task has not been once overt deficits or symptoms appear and has the systematically assessed. We, therefore, used this test to advantage of measuring such deficits over time to follow examine behavioral deficits as a function of striatal recovery of function. Furthermore since reaction time dopamine loss. When injected at doses that produced deficits required extensive loss of dopamine, these results striatal DA depletion Ͻ50%, 6-hydroxydopamine infused are consistent with a predominant role of extrasynaptic in the medial forebrain bundle produced no reliable dopamine in the mediation of relatively skilled motor tasks. impairment in the reaction time task. Higher doses [Neuropsychopharmacology 26:756–764, 2002] producing у60% DA depletion in the striatum produced a © 2002 American College of Neuropsychopharmacology. decrease in the percent correct responding throughout the 5 Published by Elsevier Science Inc. KEY WORDS: Reaction time; 6-Hydroxydopamine; Striatum; The primary neuropathology of Parkinson’s disease is Parkinson’s disease; Medial forebrain bundle; Dopamine the loss of dopamine (DA) neurons within the substan- tia nigra (SN) and massive depletion of DA in the stria- tum, the terminal region of the SN. This loss of DA ap- From the Department of Neurology, University of Pittsburgh pears to be responsible for the most prominent symptoms (ADS, MJZ), Department of Neuropharmacology, The Scripps of Parkinson’s disease. The degree of neurological deficit Research Institute (ADS, GFK), and Laboratoire de Neurobiologie Cellulaire et Fonctionnelle, Laboratoire associe à l’University Aix- is related to the loss of striatal DA (Hornykiewicz Marseille II CNRS (MA). and Kish 1987). The neurotoxins 6-hydroxydopamine Address correspondence to: Amanda D. Smith, Ph.D., Depart- (6-OHDA) and 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydro- ment of Neurology, S-510 Biomedical Science Tower, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, Tel.: (412) 383-7604, fax: (412) 624-7327, E-mail: smithad@ pyridine (MPTP), used extensively to induce selective pitt.edu loss of DA neurons within the SN, provide animal mod- Received April 5, 2001; revised October 11, 2001; accepted els that share several of the characteristics of Parkin- November 28, 2001. Online publication: 11/29/01 at www.acnp.org/citations/ son’s disease (see reviews by Zigmond and Keefe Npp112901215. 1997; Jenner and Marsden 1986; Gerlach and Riederer NEUROPSYCHOPHARMACOLOGY 2002–VOL. 26, NO. 6 © 2002 American College of Neuropsychopharmacology Published by Elsevier Science Inc. 0893-133X/02/$–see front matter 655 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY 10010 PII S0893-133X(01)00420-1 NEUROPSYCHOPHARMACOLOGY 2002–VOL. 26, NO. 6 Bilateral 6-OHDA on Reaction Time 757 1996; Przedborski and Jackson-Lewis 1998). In addition, in the number of delayed and premature responses also whereas intrastriatal injection of indirect DA agonists was observed, suggesting a disruption in cognitive as induces stereotypy (Costall et al. 1973; Statton and So- well as motor function. Deficits in the reaction time task lomon 1984), 6-OHDA lesions of the striatum block this following bilateral 6-OHDA lesions appeared after a stereotyped behavior (Price and Fibiger 1974). Finally, 70% depletion of striatal DA, were present one week chronic administration of DA receptor antagonists pro- post-lesion, and persisted for at least three months post- duce extrapyramidal effects reminiscent of Parkinson’s lesion (Moukhles et al. 1994). disease, and this is believed to be due to their action at The effects of smaller lesions have not been system- D2 receptors located in the striatum (Coffin et al. 1989). atically assessed. However, the ability to detect deficits Although resting tremor and muscular rigidity are prior to a majority loss of striatal DA would be quite generally not reported in rodents after pharmacological useful. Recent evidence shows that several trophic fac- manipulation of the nigrostriatal pathway, deficits in tors are neuroprotective in animal models of Parkin- movement initiation and execution have been studied son’s disease when these factors are administered either using several tests including a conditioned reaction before or after appreciable loss of striatal DA and SN time task. In this task, animals are typically required to neurons (Choi-Lundberg et al. 1997, 1998; Rosenblad et respond in a particular way and within a limited period al. 1998; Connor et al. 1999; Kozlowski et al. 2000). in order to receive a reward, such as a food pellet. This Should these or other treatments prove to be clinically behavioral paradigm is responsive to pharmacological efficacious, it will be essential to develop neurological manipulation of dopaminergic neurotransmission me- tests that detect nigrostriatal degeneration in the “pre- diated by the D2 subtype of DA receptors (Amalric and clinical” phase of Parkinson’s disease so that neuropro- Koob 1987, 1989; Amalric et al. 1993, 1995; Smith et al. tective strategies can be used to delay or even prevent 2000). For example, we have shown that low dose the appearance of more disruptive functional deficits. blockade of D2 receptors, but not D1 or D3 receptors, de- Therefore, in the present study the sensitivity of the creased correct responses in the conditioned reaction conditioned reaction time task to striatal DA loss was time task, increased delayed responses, and lengthened examined in 6-OHDA–lesioned rats. reaction time in a manner suggestive of dysfunctions in movement initiation (Amalric et al. 1993; Smith et al. 2000). Moreover, deficits in reaction time have also been reported in Parkinson’s disease (Evarts et al. 1981; MATERIALS AND METHODS Gauntlett-Gilbert and Brown 1998; Berry et al. 1999). Subjects These deficits appear to be mediated by the nigrostri- atal dopaminergic pathway, as 6-OHDA-induced loss Twenty four male Wistar rats (Beckman, The Scripps of SN neurons and striatal DA, and not accumbal DA, Research Institute, La Jolla, CA), weighing 120–150 g at produces impairments in this task (Amalric and Koob the start of the experiment, were housed in groups of 1987), and intrastriatal infusion of the DA receptor an- three and maintained on a reverse 12-h light/dark cycle tagonist haloperidol has a comparable effect (Amalric with lights on at 10 P.M. Behavioral measurements were and Koob 1989). conducted during the animals’ light cycle between the Previous experiments have examined the effect of hours of 7 and 10 A.M., 5 days a week. Rats were initially large 6-OHDA-induced lesions on performance in a food deprived for 24 h at the start of training and subse- simple and choice reaction time task. Because of the de- quently food restricted to 15–17 g of food (Harlan Tek- bilitating effects of bilateral lesions, the majority of lad Laboratories, Bartonville, IL) per day for the dura- these studies examined the effect of unilateral lesions tion of the experiment to maintain them at 80–85% of on performance in the reaction time task. Massive uni- their free food body weight. Water was freely available lateral lesions of the nigrostriatal pathway (у95% loss throughout the experiment. All procedures were in of striatal DA) produced unilateral deficits in move- strict accordance with the guidelines for the NIH Care ment initiation, which had not recovered two months and Use of Laboratory Animals and approved by the later. The deficits were characterized by an increase in Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee of The the reaction time on the side contralateral to the lesion Scripps Research Institute. and a preferential response bias ipsilateral to the lesion (Carli et al. 1985, 1989; Brown and Robbins 1989, 1991; Training Procedure Phillips and Brown 1999). In the few cases in which bi- lateral lesions of the nigrostriatal pathway have been Experiments were conducted in standard experimental examined, profound deficits in the reaction time task chambers (29 cm l ϫ 24 cm w ϫ 19.5 cm h; Coulbourn were observed, and included lengthened reaction times Instruments, Allentown, PA) placed in sound attenu- and decreases in the percent correct responses (Amalric ated cubicles. A retractable lever (BRS/LVE), located 4 and Koob 1987, 1989; Moukhles et al. 1994). An increase cm above the grid floor and 9 cm below the cue light 758 A.D. Smith et al. NEUROPSYCHOPHARMACOLOGY 2002–VOL. 26, NO. 6 (0.5 cm diameter), was extended immediately after the days. During the recovery period, two rats that had re- animals were placed in the experimental chambers. Af- ceived 4 g 6-OHDA had to be fed by oral gavage. ter completion of a successful trial, the food pellet was These rats received 3 ml of Sustacal supplemented with delivered to the food trough in less than 1 s. The tempo- 2 g of sucrose by oral gavage 3 times a day, and had free ral resolution of the instrumental setup was 10 msec.