Psycho-genetic studies have revealed a role for the brain serotonin system in gambling proneness and poor decision-making. We assessed whether manipulation of brain serotonin levels in rats affected perfor- mance in operant-based tasks for decision-making and gambling proneness. Male Wistar rats were exposed to an L-tryptophan (TRP) deficient diet (0.0 g/kg; T group) or to a control, L-tryptophan con- taining diet (2.8 g/kg; Tþ group). The same rats were tested for decision-making performance in the rodent Iowa Gambling Task (rIGT) using home-cage operant panels, and subsequently for gambling proneness in a Probabilistic Delivery Task (rPDT) using classic Skinnerboxes. At sacrifice, monoamines and metabolites were evaluated with HPLC analysis, confirming a drastically reduced serotonin synthesis, as well as altered dopamine turnover in the prefrontal cortex of T rats. As expected, control rats (Tþ) progressively chose the option with the best long-term payoff in the rIGT, and also shifted from “Large & Luck-Linked” (LLL) to “Small & Sure” (SS) reinforcers in the rPDT. In contrast, depleted animals (T) exhibited a weaker improvement of performance in the rIGT and maintained a sub-optimal attraction for LLL reinforcer in the rPDT. Comparing individual performances in both tests, we found a significant correlation between the two tasks in control (Tþ) but not in depleted (T) rats. The present study revealed that (1) brain 5-HT depletion leads to poor decision-making and to gambling proneness; (2) the relationship between these two traits, shown in the control group, was disrupted in 5-HT depleted rats. The data are discussed in terms of changes within forebrain loops involved in cognitive and motivational/affective processes.

Compromised decision-making and increased gambling proneness following dietary serotonin depletion in rats / S. Koot;F. Zoratto;T. Cassano;R. Colangeli;G. Laviola;R. van den Bos;W. Adriani. - In: NEUROPHARMACOLOGY. - ISSN 0028-3908. - ELETTRONICO. - 62:(2012), pp. 1640-1650. [10.1016/j.neuropharm.2011.11.002]

Compromised decision-making and increased gambling proneness following dietary serotonin depletion in rats

ZORATTO, FRANCESCA;
2012

Abstract

Psycho-genetic studies have revealed a role for the brain serotonin system in gambling proneness and poor decision-making. We assessed whether manipulation of brain serotonin levels in rats affected perfor- mance in operant-based tasks for decision-making and gambling proneness. Male Wistar rats were exposed to an L-tryptophan (TRP) deficient diet (0.0 g/kg; T group) or to a control, L-tryptophan con- taining diet (2.8 g/kg; Tþ group). The same rats were tested for decision-making performance in the rodent Iowa Gambling Task (rIGT) using home-cage operant panels, and subsequently for gambling proneness in a Probabilistic Delivery Task (rPDT) using classic Skinnerboxes. At sacrifice, monoamines and metabolites were evaluated with HPLC analysis, confirming a drastically reduced serotonin synthesis, as well as altered dopamine turnover in the prefrontal cortex of T rats. As expected, control rats (Tþ) progressively chose the option with the best long-term payoff in the rIGT, and also shifted from “Large & Luck-Linked” (LLL) to “Small & Sure” (SS) reinforcers in the rPDT. In contrast, depleted animals (T) exhibited a weaker improvement of performance in the rIGT and maintained a sub-optimal attraction for LLL reinforcer in the rPDT. Comparing individual performances in both tests, we found a significant correlation between the two tasks in control (Tþ) but not in depleted (T) rats. The present study revealed that (1) brain 5-HT depletion leads to poor decision-making and to gambling proneness; (2) the relationship between these two traits, shown in the control group, was disrupted in 5-HT depleted rats. The data are discussed in terms of changes within forebrain loops involved in cognitive and motivational/affective processes.
2012
62
1640
1650
S. Koot;F. Zoratto;T. Cassano;R. Colangeli;G. Laviola;R. van den Bos;W. Adriani
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Utilizza questo identificatore per citare o creare un link a questa risorsa: https://hdl.handle.net/2158/806284
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