Acute cocaine alters oxytocin levels in the medial preoptic area and amygdala in lactating rat dams: implications for cocaine-induced changes in maternal behavior and maternal aggression

Acute cocaine administration has been correlated with disruptions in the onset and maintenance of maternal behavior as well as decreases in maternal aggressive behavior in rat dams. A growing body of evidence suggests that cocaine may alter oxytocin levels leading to impairments in maternal behavior...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Neuropeptides (Edinburgh) 2001-04, Vol.35 (2), p.127-134
Main Authors: Elliott, J.C., Lubin, D.A., Walker, C.H., Johns, J.M.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Aggression - drug effects
Amygdala - drug effects
Amygdala - metabolism
Animals
Biological and medical sciences
Brain Chemistry - drug effects
Cocaine - pharmacology
Dopamine Uptake Inhibitors - pharmacology
Female
Lactation - physiology
Male
Maternal Behavior - drug effects
Medical sciences
Oxytocin - metabolism
Pharmacology. Drug treatments
Postpartum Period
Preoptic Area - drug effects
Preoptic Area - metabolism
Rats
Respiratory system
ventral tegmental area
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Summary:Acute cocaine administration has been correlated with disruptions in the onset and maintenance of maternal behavior as well as decreases in maternal aggressive behavior in rat dams. A growing body of evidence suggests that cocaine may alter oxytocin levels leading to impairments in maternal behavior and aggression. The current study assessed whether acute cocaine injections alter oxytocin (OT) levels in the medial preoptic area (MPOA), ventral tegmental area (VTA), amygdala (AMY), and hippocampus (HIP) on postpartum day (PPD) 1 or PPD 6. On PPD 1, 30mg/kg cocaine reduced OT levels by approximately 26.9% (picograms/milligram) in the MPOA (t (18) = 3.44, P
ISSN:0143-4179
1532-2785
DOI:10.1054/npep.2001.0854