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A Comparison Of The Relative Magnitude Of Combinations Of Relapse Types In Rats, Mary Bridges

Theses

Applied behavior analysis uses scientifically derived methods to create treatments for socially significant behaviors. A threat to these successful treatments is the recurrence of previously reduced behavior (i.e., relapse). Relapse can be categorized into several types depending on the variables that induce relapse. Three types prevalent in clinical settings are reinstatement (i.e., induced by re-exposure to reinforcers or stimuli paired with the target behavior), renewal (i.e., induced by changes in context), and resurgence (i.e., induced by worsening of alternative reinforcement). Because relapse is harmful to long-term treatment maintenance, prior research has developed and tested mitigation strategies for these relapse types, …

Trial Spacing And The Conditioned Motivational Effects Of A Food-Predictive Cue, Gabrielle M. Sutton

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Stimuli in the environment can come to influence motivation and behavior through a process known as Pavlovian conditioning. During Pavlovian conditioning, stimuli in the environment come to predict the availability of a reward. Two different procedures are used to investigate how stimuli can modify ongoing behavior and reward consumption, known as Pavlovian-instrumental transfer and potentiated feeding, respectively. In other procedures that investigate how stimuli modify behavior, certain time intervals during Pavlovian training can influence how much a stimulus can modify behavior. One of those intervals is the time between the presentation of a stimulus and the associated reward. This interval …

Effects Of Oxycodone And Methylphenidate On Self-Control With Aversive Outcomes, Jeremy Saul Langford

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports

In the context of choice, one is said to show self-control under numerous conditions in which consideration is given to the delayed outcomes of each option. This can be difficult: both reinforcing and aversive outcomes become less effective as they are increasingly delayed. Several socially significant issues arise from a failure of delayed, aversive outcomes to impact choice, especially when immediate, reinforcing outcomes are available. Identifying the conditions under which choice is sensitive to delayed outcomes is critical to shifting choices toward alternatives in which contact with delayed, aversive outcomes is minimized. Two experiments were conducted with the aim of …

No Statistical Learning Advantage In Children Over Adults: Evidence From Behaviour And Neural Entrainment., Christine N Moreau, Marc F. Joanisse, Jerrica Mulgrew, Laura J. Batterink

Brain and Mind Institute Researchers' Publications

Explicit recognition measures of statistical learning (SL) suggest that children and adults have similar linguistic SL abilities. However, explicit tasks recruit additional cognitive processes that are not directly relevant for SL and may thus underestimate children's true SL capacities. In contrast, implicit tasks and neural measures of SL should be less influenced by explicit, higher-level cognitive abilities and thus may be better suited to capturing developmental differences in SL. Here, we assessed SL to six minutes of an artificial language in English-speaking children (n = 56, 24 females, M = 9.98 years) and adults (n = 44; 31 females, M …

The Effects Of The Aromatase Inhibitor, Letrozole, On Lithium Chloride (Licl)-Induced Conditioned Disgust Behaviour (Anticipatory Nausea) In Male Rats, Vangel Matic

Undergraduate Student Research Internships Conference

Anticipatory Nausea (AN) is a form of classical conditioning in which the effects of a nausea-inducing toxin become associated with a specific environmental context. AN is often experienced by individuals receiving chemotherapy treatment, whereby the emetic effects of the chemotherapy agents become associated with the treatment context (i.e. hospital, clinic), such that exposure to the context alone can cause an individual to experience nausea and potentially withdraw from treatment. Chemotherapy-associated AN is suggested to have a higher incidence in females compared to males.

AN can be represented in a rodent model (conditioned disgust) through the occurrence of conditioned gaping behaviour …

An Experimental Analysis Of The Classic Overjustification Effect In Rats: Does The Removal Of “Expected” Rewards Alter Behavior In Rats As It Does In Humans?, Eleah Sunde

Master's Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

The overjustification effect posits that rewards undermine intrinsic motivation, such that an individual’s engagement in previously intrinsically motivating tasks will decrease when a previously reliable reward is withdrawn. This study aimed to determine if this overjustification effect can be demonstrated in rats, with typical confounds related to social and verbal aspects of reward delivery controlled for. Baseline “intrinsic” wheel-running rates of seven SpragueDawley rats were compared to rates that followed administration and withdrawal of a contingent sucrose reward, and to rates of rats in control conditions (n = 7). Consistent with the author’s hypothesis, the reward group’s wheel-running did not …

A Translational Examination Of Alternative-Response Discrimination Training And Resurgence, Kaitlyn O. Browning

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Individuals with neurodevelopmental disorders such as autism spectrum disorders often engage in severe forms of problem behavior. Reward-based behavioral interventions are highly effective at reducing levels of problem behavior and teaching more appropriate and adaptive alternative behaviors. Despite successful reduction in problem behavior during treatment, problem behaviors are susceptible to reoccurrence or relapse. Resurgence is a type of behavioral relapse that is particularly relevant to the treatment of problem behavior and may occur following the worsening of conditions of a more recently learned alternative behavior. That is, if the rewards that were used to teach the alternative behavior are removed …

A Temporal Information-Theoretic Model Of Suboptimal Choice, Paul J. Cunningham

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Humans and animals often make decisions not in their long-term best interest. In one example, called suboptimal choice, pigeons sacrifice food for food-predictive stimuli. The study of suboptimal choice can reveal insights into the role of reward-predictive stimuli in maladaptive decision-making that characterizes numerous behavioral disorders. However, there is currently little evidence that rats engage in suboptimal choice, thereby raising questions about the species-generality of suboptimal choice. According to the temporal information-theoretic model, developed in Chapter 2, suboptimal choice emerges when pigeons pay more attention to the bits of temporal information conveyed by food-predictive stimuli than the rate of food …

A Comparison Of Response-Contingent And Response-Independent Autoshaping Trials In Rats, Jenna E. Gaskins

Theses and Dissertations

Autoshaping is a procedure, combining both operant conditioning and classical conditioning, used in animal training to jump-start a target behavior. Lepper and Petursdottir (2017) found that response-contingent pairings (RCP) were more effective than responseindependent pairings (RIP) in producing vocalizations in children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). RIP procedures entail a time-based intertrial interval (ITI) followed by the beginning of a trial, whereas RCP procedures include a response initiation period between the ITI and the trial. The current study compared RCP and RIP procedures to determine which one was more effective for acquisition of nose poking in rats. Number of days …

Influences Of Salvinorin A And Sex Differences On Depressive- And Anxiety-Like Behaviors In A Chronic Mild Stress Paradigm, Sarah Mitchell

Theses

Kappa opioid receptors are colocalized with dopamine receptors and are frequently associated with depression, anxiety, stress, and drug use and abuse. KOR antagonism has widely been considered anti-depressive and anxiolytic in animal models while agonism is pro-depressive and anxiogenic. However, recent findings suggest that SalvA, a natural kappa agonist derived from a plant in the mint family, can reduce depressive- and anxiety-like behavior in rats. The current study investigated the effects of chronic mild stress on behavior, attenuation by SalvA, and sex differences. 52 Long-Evans rats, 26 males and 26 females, were exposed to six weeks of CMS. Animals received …

Age, Access, And Sweets-Motivation, Gehan Senthinathan

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Availability can have profound influence on the consumption of foods and drinks. The 2-phase intermittent-continuous protocol (ICP) examines sucrose solution intake in two groups of rats and finds intermittent access significantly increases intake. In Phase I, rats receive intermittent or continuous access to a 4% sucrose solution, and with adults this results in a long-term elevation (a doubling) in the intermittent group. In Phase II, when rats are shifted to common sucrose schedule, this difference is maintained. Adult rats given 16% sucrose in Phase I do not differ in consumption, but in Phase II with 4% sucrose, an unexpressed elevation …

Resurgence Of Cocaine-Seeking In Rats Following Long Access And Punishment, Rusty W. Nall

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Strategies that provide access to alternative non-drug rewards are among the most effective at reducing substance use in individuals with substance use disorders, but relapse often occurs when alternative rewards are removed. Relapse induced by the loss of alternative rewards is called resurgence, and represents a challenge to otherwise effective strategies for reducing drug use. An animal model has been useful for studying resurgence, but the extant model has two limitations. First, humans usually refer to the negative consequences of drug use as the reason they stop taking drugs, but the extant model uses drug unavailability to reduce drug seeking. …

Examination Of Sex Differences And The Role Of Ovarian Hormones In Modulating Nicotine Withdrawal In Rats, Rodolfo Jesus Flores Garcia

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Introduction: Aim 1 characterized sex differences and the role of ovarian hormones in physical signs and negative affective states produced by nicotine withdrawal in female, ovariectomized female (OVX), and male rats. We also compared nicotine withdrawal and corticosterone levels with estradiol (E2) and progesterone across the 4-day estrous cycle. Aim 2 validated the role of ovarian hormones in withdrawal in OVX females that received vehicle, E2, or E2+progesterone. Methods: Female rats received a sham surgery or an ovariectomy procedure. Fifteen days later, all rats were implanted with a pump that delivered nicotine for 14 days. On the test day, separate …

No Evidence That Portion Size Influences Food Consumption In Male Sprague Dawley Rats, Fabien Naniex, Sophie C. Pinder, Megan Y. Summers, Renee M. Rouleau, Eric Robinson, Kevin P. Myers, James E. Mccutcheon

Faculty Journal Articles

In studies of eating behavior that have been conducted in humans, the tendency to consume more when given larger portions of food, known as the portion size effect (PSE), is one of the most robust and widely replicated findings. Despite this, the mechanisms that underpin it are still unknown. In particular, it is unclear whether the PSE arises from higher-order social and cognitive processes that are unique to humans or, instead, reflects more fundamental processes that drive feeding, such as conditioned food-seeking. Importantly, studies in rodents and other animals have yet to show convincing evidence of a PSE. In this …

Behavioral Impairment Following Gestational Exposure To Titanium Dioxide Nanomaterial Aerosols In Male And Female Rats, Matthew Leland Eckard

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports

Engineered nanomaterials (ENMs) are beginning to be recognized as hazardous to human and animal health. Titanium dioxide (TiO2) is primarily used as a whitening agent in paints, plastics, and sunscreens. While relatively inert in its bulk form, nano-TiO2 (diameter) can produce prolonged inflammation and oxidative stress in target tissue. Recently, the potential for nano-TiO2 to cause neuroinflammation and damage has heightened concerns about its continued use. One important concern is that nano-TiO2, and other metal oxide ENMs, may affect fetal neurodevelopment. Accordingly, it is imperative to screen ENMs, like TiO2, for possible neurotoxicity following developmental exposures. The current set of …

The Role Of Progesterone Receptor In The Developing Medial Preoptic Nucleus, Diana Lalitsasivimol

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

Numerous neurodevelopmental and neuropsychiatric diseases have a distinct sex bias in

Inactivation Of The Medial-Prefrontal Cortex Impairs Interval Timing Precision, But Not Timing Accuracy Or Scalar Timing In A Peak-Interval Procedure In Rats, Catalin V. Buhusi, Marcelo B. Reyes, Cody-Aaron Gathers, Sorinel A. Oprisan, Mona Buhusi

Psychology Faculty Publications

Motor sequence learning, planning and execution of goal-directed behaviors, and decision making rely on accurate time estimation and production of durations in the seconds-to-minutes range. The pathways involved in planning and execution of goal-directed behaviors include cortico-striato-thalamo-cortical circuitry modulated by dopaminergic inputs. A critical feature of interval timing is its scalar property, by which the precision of timing is proportional to the timed duration. We examined the role of medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) in timing by evaluating the effect of its reversible inactivation on timing accuracy, timing precision and scalar timing. Rats were trained to time two durations in a …

Discriminative Stimulus Effects Of Gabapentin, Michael Zuidema

All NMU Master's Theses

The present study sought to evaluate the discriminative stimulus effects of the anticonvulsant gabapentin in rats trained to discriminate 30.0 mg/kg gabapentin from vehicle in a two-lever drug discrimination task. All of the ten rats tested were able to establish gabapentin as an interoceptive cue. Gabapentin produced full generalization (≥ 80% gabapentin-lever responding) for itself at 30.0, 60.0, and 120.0 mg/kg doses. Pentobarbital produced full substitution, while pregabalin, carbamazepine, fentanyl, and buspirone produced partial substitution (≥ 60% gabapentin-lever responding) for gabapentin. Ethanol and raclopride did not substitute for gabapentin. The psychostimulant amphetamine did not produce substitution; however, the 0.25 mg/kg …

Investigating The Effects Of Sensory Learning In Rats Using Intra And Extra Stimulus Modalities, Ariel M. Kershner

Faculty Curated Undergraduate Works

The purpose of this study was to see what rats learn about the elements of a compound stimulus (a stimulus composed of two different stimuli), and whether their learning differs if the compound is from the same modality (intra-modal), i.e. both visual, or from different modalities (inter-modal), i.e. visual and auditory. We hypothesized that the rats would respond more to the compound stimuli than to the single stimuli (Pearce and Wilson, 1990), more to the compound modality of inter-modal elements than to the compound modality of intra-modal elements (Miller, 1971 and Gingras, 2009), equally to the intra-modal elements (Rescorla, 1972), …

Modified Single Prolonged Stress Reduces Cocaine Self-Administration During Acquisition Regardless Of Rearing Environment, Rebecca S. Hofford, Mark A. Prendergast, Michael T. Bardo

Psychology Faculty Publications

Until recently, there were few rodent models available to study the interaction of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and drug taking. Like PTSD, single prolonged stress (SPS) produces hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis dysfunction and alters psychostimulant self-administration. Other stressors, such as isolation stress, also alter psychostimulant self-administration. However, it is currently unknown if isolation housing combined with SPS can alter the acquisition or maintenance of cocaine self-administration. The current study applied modified SPS (modSPS; two hours restraint immediately followed by cold swim stress) to rats raised in an isolation condition (Iso), enrichment condition (Enr), or standard condition (Std) to measure changes in …

Nmda Receptor Blockade Specifically Impedes The Acquisition Of Incentive Salience Attribution, Jonathan J. Chow, Joshua S. Beckmann

Psychology Faculty Publications

Glutamatergic signaling plays an important role in learning and memory. Using Pavlovian conditioned approach procedures, the mechanisms that drive stimulus-reward learning and memory have been investigated. However, there are instances where reward-predictive stimuli can function beyond being solely predictive and can be attributed with “motivational value” or incentive salience. Using a Pavlovian conditioned approach procedure consisting of two different but equally predictive stimuli (lever vs. tone) we investigated the role NMDA receptor function has in the attribution of incentive salience. The results revealed that the administration of MK-801, an NMDA receptor antagonist, during acquisition of Pavlovian conditioned approach promoted goal-tracking …

Human-Like Behavior And Cognition: Not A Good Starting Point, Magnus Helgheim Blystad

Animal Sentience

Chapman & Huffman make use of observations and studies that show how humans may not be as unique in our behaviour and cognition as previously thought. I wholeheartedly agree that our uniqueness might be small and that if it exists, it should not give our species any right to act cruelly towards other animals. However, this kind of logic can be problematic. I present a few of the issues in this commentary.

Effects Of Delay And Signals On Choice Between Delayed Food Alone And Immediate Food With Delayed Shock, Forrest James Toegel

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports

Much of the research in the area of self-control has examined choice between small immediate reinforcers and large delayed reinforcers, but many problems result from situations in which a single choice produces consequences of conflicting valence: Those in which the immediate outcome is reinforcing and the delayed outcome is aversive. Recent research has evaluated how preference for a large reinforcer which is followed by a delayed shock changes as a function of the delay to shock and how the intensity and duration of delayed shock affects the value of a large reinforcer. The present set of experiments investigated how the …

Effects Of Social Interaction On Morphine Conditioned Place Preference In Adolescent Male Rats, Virginia G. Weiss

Theses and Dissertations--Psychology

The fact that adolescents commonly initiate drug use in social settings is well established. Both clinical and preclinical research has investigated how social interaction is altered by a variety of drugs of abuse. What is less understood is how the rewarding value of drugs of abuse is affected by the presence of social peers. This dissertation aimed to investigate the interaction of morphine and social play on conditioned place preference (CPP) in adolescent male Sprague Dawley rats, using both behavioral and immunohistochemistry (IHC) methods. Rats were exposed to morphine (0, 1, or 3 mg/kg; s.c.), social interaction, or a combination …

Effects Of Reinforcement Rate On The Aversive Function Of Timeout From Positive Reinforcement, Cory Whirtley

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports

Although the use of timeout from positive reinforcement is widespread and has been shown to be an effective punisher in clinical settings, the factors responsible for its effectiveness are not fully understood. The present experiment was designed to evaluate one of these factors, the reinforcement rate underway during periods of time-in. Rats’ lever pressing was maintained on variable-interval schedules of food reinforcement in a multiple schedule with two components. In one component, no timeouts were delivered. In the other component, when a variable-ratio schedule was met, lever presses were followed by a 30-s timeout during which a tone sounded, the …

Effects Of Environmental Enrichment On Self-Administration Of The Short-Acting Opioid Remifentanil In Male Rats, Rebecca S. Hofford, Jonathan J. Chow, Joshua S. Beckmann, Michael T. Bardo

Psychology Faculty Publications

Background

Opioid abuse is a major problem around the world. Identifying environmental factors that contribute to opioid abuse and addiction is necessary for decreasing this epidemic. In rodents, environmental enrichment protects against the development of low dose stimulant self-administration, but studies examining the effect of enrichment and isolation (compared to standard housing) on the development of intravenous opioid self-administration have not been conducted. The present study investigated the role of environmental enrichment on self-administration of the short-acting μ-opioid remifentanil.

Methods

Rats were raised in an enriched condition (Enr), standard condition (Std), or isolated condition (Iso) beginning at 21 days of …

The Effects Of Pre-Trial Event Stimulus Properties On Timing In The Peak Interval Procedure, Daniel A. Garces

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

In the peak interval procedure, intruded conditioned stimuli produce shifts in peak/middle time towards later values, regardless of whether these stimuli are presented prior to or during the timing signal. Although the effects of during-trial stimulus properties—temporal location, duration, and salience—have been previously reported, no research exists on how before-trial stimulus properties influence the extent of shifts in middle time. In the present study, we manipulated within subjects both the temporal location and type (i.e., cue alone, response-independent reinforcer alone, or cue and response-contingent reinforcer together) of the pre-trial event. An individual-trial analysis suggested that the type of stimulus event …

(Re)Grounding Grounded Theory: A Close Reading Of Theory In Four Schools, Tavis Apramian, Sayra Cristancho, Chris Watling, Lorelei Lingard

Health and Rehabilitation Sciences Publications

The debate over what counts as theory has dominated methodological conversations in grounded theory research for decades. Four of the schools of thought in that debate – Glaserian, Straussian, Charmazian, and Clarkeian – hold different assumptions about what theory is and how it is made. The first two schools understand theory as an abstraction that exactingly accounts for exceptions. The second two schools understand theory as a process of describing voices hidden from public view. While Glaserian and Straussian coding processes focus on coding exceptions, Charmazian and Clarkeian coding processes focus on building a story of the participants or social …

Effects Of Early Adolescent Exposure To D-Amphetamine In A Rodent Model Of Nicotine Reward, Eric Louis Harvey

Dissertations

Previous studies with rodents have found that adolescent exposure to psychoactive drugs can alter neurophysiology and produce behavioral effects that persist into adulthood. While several studies have examined the effects of adolescent exposure to nicotine on the subsequent rewarding value of various drugs of abuse in adulthood, to date, no known studies have examined the converse of this relationship. d-Amphetamine (i.e., dextroamphetamine, ProCentra®) is a potent psychostimulant that is commonly used in the treatment of Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) in adolescents. The present study assessed the effects of adolescent exposure to d-amphetamine on the rewarding value of nicotine in …

Bk Channels Mediate Synaptic Plasticity Underlying Habituation In Rats., Tariq Zaman, Cleusa De Oliveira, Mahabba Smoka, Chakravarthi Narla, Michael O Poulter, Susanne Schmid

Brain and Mind Institute Researchers' Publications

Habituation is a basic form of implicit learning and represents a sensory filter that is disrupted in autism, schizophrenia, and several other mental disorders. Despite extensive research in the past decades on habituation of startle and other escape responses, the underlying neural mechanisms are still not fully understood. There is evidence from previous studies indicating that BK channels might play a critical role in habituation. We here used a wide array of approaches to test this hypothesis. We show that BK channel activation and subsequent phosphorylation of these channels are essential for synaptic depression presumably underlying startle habituation in rats, …