Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Low prefrontal PSA-NCAM confers risk for alcoholism-related behavior.
- Journal:
- Nature neuroscience
- Year:
- 2012
- Authors:
- Barker, Jacqueline M et al.
- Affiliation:
- Department of Psychiatry · United States
- Species:
- rodent
Abstract
The factors underlying vulnerability to alcoholism are largely unknown. We identified in rodents an innate endophenotype predicting individual risk for alcohol-related behaviors that was associated with decreased expression of the neuroplasticity-related polysialylated neural cell adhesion molecule (PSA-NCAM). Depletion of PSA-NCAM in the ventromedial prefrontal cortex was sufficient to render mice unable to extinguish alcohol seeking, indicating a causal role of naturally occurring variation. These data suggest a mechanism of aberrant prefrontal neuroplasticity that underlies enhanced propensity for inflexible addiction-related behavior.
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Search related cases →Original publication: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/22922785/