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Full-Text Articles in Biological Psychology

Impact Of Perinatal Escitalopram Exposure On Adolescent Behavior, Jessica Bezenah - Bottorff May 2024

Impact Of Perinatal Escitalopram Exposure On Adolescent Behavior, Jessica Bezenah - Bottorff

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

Escitalopram (EST), a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI), is an antidepressant frequently used during pregnancy, yet there is limited knowledge of its long-term effects on maternal use. Past studies suggest that maternal exposure may adversely affect the fetus, which may be due to the hyperserotonergic environment caused by the nature of SSRIs during early development. Modifications of the serotonergic system in offspring during certain critical periods of development may result in long-term behavioral and cognitive changes in adulthood. Further, recent human studies have demonstrated that prenatal exposure to SSRIs in humans may increase susceptibility to autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and …


Repeated Treatment With 5-Ht1a And 5-Ht1b Receptor Agonists: Evidence Of Tolerance And Behavioral Sensitization, Jordan Taylor Dec 2023

Repeated Treatment With 5-Ht1a And 5-Ht1b Receptor Agonists: Evidence Of Tolerance And Behavioral Sensitization, Jordan Taylor

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

Serotonin has been found to regulate several cognitive and physiological functions, and its role in depression and other neuropsychiatric disorders has been a focus of research. More specifically, a wealth of research regarding serotonin focuses on serotonergic medications in the treatment of neuropsychiatric disorders, such as depression and anxiety, and stimulates the 5-HT1A and 5-HT1B receptors. Within the last decade, there has been an increase in prescriptions of psychotropic medication for children, however, the efficacy and adverse effects of these drugs have not been evaluated in younger populations. While antidepressants reduce symptoms of depression in adults, they are …


Cerebrospinal Fluid Biomarkers Not Associated With Neurologic Compromise Among Mild Cognitively Impaired Reverters With Parkinson's Disease, Cameron Ryczek Dec 2023

Cerebrospinal Fluid Biomarkers Not Associated With Neurologic Compromise Among Mild Cognitively Impaired Reverters With Parkinson's Disease, Cameron Ryczek

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

Parkinson's Disease (PD) is a neurodegenerative disease characterized by motor (e.g. tremors) and non-motor symptoms (e.g. cognitive impairment). PD patients' change in cognitive functioning can be observed using the following classifications: cognitively intact, mild cognitive impairment (MCI), or dementia (PDD). MCI has many subtypes, one of which is MCI reversion which is defined as those with MCI at one time point reverting to cognitively intact later. While there is limited research into the utility of MCI reversion and its relationship with cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) biomarkers in PD, this study will begin to elucidate this relationship. To this end, data from …


Serotonin 1b/1a Receptor Modulation On Behavioral Flexibility In C57bl/6j Mice, Brandon L. Oliver Aug 2021

Serotonin 1b/1a Receptor Modulation On Behavioral Flexibility In C57bl/6j Mice, Brandon L. Oliver

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

Pharmacological activation of the 5-HT1B and 1A receptors has been implicated in OCD-like behaviors in rodents such as increased perseverative circling, checking behaviors, and locomotor stereotypy. However, little is understood about the effects of 5-HT1B and 1A receptor activation on behavioral inflexibility, a common symptom associated with OCD. The present study utilized the 5-HT1B/1A receptor agonist RU24969 at 0.01, 0.1, and 1.0 mg/kg to test three hypotheses. The first hypothesis predicted RU24969 would lead to a dose-dependent impairment on behavioral flexibility in C57BL/6J mice. It was also predicted that male C57BL/6J mice would be more inflexible than female C57BL/6J mice …


Effects Of Neonatal Ethanol Exposure In Normal And Dopamine Deficient Rats, Jessica Luz Razo May 2021

Effects Of Neonatal Ethanol Exposure In Normal And Dopamine Deficient Rats, Jessica Luz Razo

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a common developmental disorder characterized by impulsivity, inattention, and hyperactivity. In rodents, neonatal 6-OHDA lesions is an established model of ADHD because it produces symptoms of hyperactivity and cognitive deficits that improve following psychostimulant treatment. Recently, early alcohol exposure in rodents has also been suggested as a model of ADHD due to the high prevalence of ADHD in children exposed prenatally to alcohol. However, children exposed to prenatal alcohol differ in symptoms from children with idiopathic ADHD, suggesting that ADHD caused by prenatal alcohol exposure may be a special subtype of ADHD or a …


Biological Siblings: Can You Trust Them With Your Mate?, Elisha Barron Dec 2020

Biological Siblings: Can You Trust Them With Your Mate?, Elisha Barron

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

Recent studies suggest that genes may influence human mate preferences. What would this mean for same-sex siblings who share genes? Might they also share mate preferences and engage in mate poaching or would social norms and strong sibling bonds discourage such behaviors? We hypothesized that siblings would perceive their mate preferences to be more similar to their sibling’s than to an average person of their same gender. It was also hypothesized that the association between perceived sibling mate preferences and sibling mate poaching would be moderated by sibling closeness and sibling competition. Additionally, it was hypothesized that sibling mate competition …


Scope Of Attention Variation As A Function Of Anxiety And Depression, Kathleen O'Donnell Jun 2020

Scope Of Attention Variation As A Function Of Anxiety And Depression, Kathleen O'Donnell

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

As a social species, correct emotional perception is so vital, that the human brain has evolved a mechanism to control attentional choices by exerting a narrowed field of perception during danger, called the scope of attention (SoA). The SoA determines what information will be focused on or ignored by blocking the perception of non-relevant items and increasing selective focus on danger; even if danger is merely a sad-face. The emotional items blocked from perception cannot be remembered because they were never perceived. But, attention-control to emotional stimuli also varies with mood, as seen in mood-disorders. A mood-disorder’s effect upon the …


Age-Dependent Effects Of Eedq On Cocaine-Induced Locomotor Activity And D2 Receptor Supersensitivity, Angie Teran Jul 2019

Age-Dependent Effects Of Eedq On Cocaine-Induced Locomotor Activity And D2 Receptor Supersensitivity, Angie Teran

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

The neurochemical changes occurring between the preweanling period and adolescence could be crucial for understanding the role development plays in the manifestation of psychotic behaviors. N-ethoxycarbonyl-2-ethoxy-1,2-dihydroquinoline (EEDQ) fully attenuates the DA agonist-induced behaviors of adult rats, while potentiating the DA agonist-induced locomotor activity of preweanling rats. My specific hypotheses were as follows: (1) Systemically administered EEDQ would block the cocaine-induced locomotor activity of adult rats. (2) Systemically administered EEDQ would potentiate the cocaine-induced locomotion of preweanling rats. (3) EEDQ would increase the Emax values (a measure of D2 receptor sensitivity) of preweanling rats, but not adolescent or adult rats. …


Cannabinoid-Induced Behavioral Sensitization In Adolescent Sprague-Dawley Rats, Michelle Stone Oct 2018

Cannabinoid-Induced Behavioral Sensitization In Adolescent Sprague-Dawley Rats, Michelle Stone

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

Adolescent cannabis use has grown because of increased availability and higher societal acceptance. This increase in cannabis use is problematic as adolescents who experiment with cannabis are more likely to abuse cannabis and experiment with other illicit drugs such as cocaine. The reason for the greater susceptibility to drugs use is unclear and may be the result of altered drug sensitivity after cannabis exposure. Thus, the present investigation used the behavioral sensitization paradigm to examine the behavioral response of early adolescent rats to the cannabinoid agonist CP 55,940 (CP) or cocaine after repeated cannabinoid administration. It was hypothesized that: (1) …


Effects Of Nicotine Exposure On Methamphetamine Oral Self-Administration, Extinction, And Reinstatement In Adolescent Rats, Zachary Robert Harmony Dec 2017

Effects Of Nicotine Exposure On Methamphetamine Oral Self-Administration, Extinction, And Reinstatement In Adolescent Rats, Zachary Robert Harmony

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

Adolescence is a vulnerable developmental period in regards to drug initiation and use. The gateway hypothesis suggests that adolescent cigarette smoking may result in a heightened risk for methamphetamine use. However, little is understood about the role of nicotine on adolescent methamphetamine addiction. The aim of the present study was to determine whether early, late, or continuous adolescent nicotine exposure would alter oral methamphetamine self-administration, extinction, or reinstatement. A total of 164 male and female Sprague-Dawley rats were pretreated with saline or nicotine (0.16, or 0.64 mg/kg, sc) beginning on postnatal day (PD) 25 for 10 consecutive days. On PD …


The Importance Of Serotonergic And Adrenergic Receptors For The Induction And Expression Of One-Trial Cocaine-Induced Behavioral Sensitization, Krista N. Rudberg Dec 2016

The Importance Of Serotonergic And Adrenergic Receptors For The Induction And Expression Of One-Trial Cocaine-Induced Behavioral Sensitization, Krista N. Rudberg

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

Addiction is a complex process in which behavioral sensitization may be an important component. While the behavioral effects of sensitization are well established, the intricate neurobiology of the phenomenon is still largely unknown. Dopamine systems mediate the induction of behavioral sensitization in adult rats, but there is a large amount of evidence showing that other neurotransmitter systems also modulate the induction process. For example, the α1b-adrenergic and 5-HT2A receptor systems are known to modulate the sensitized responding of adult rats, but the roles that these receptor systems play in the induction and expression of behavioral sensitization during the preweanling …


Nicotine And Methylphenidate Chornic Exposure On Adult Cannabinoid Receptor Agonist (Cp 55,940) Place Conditioning In Male Rats, Christopher P. Plant Jun 2016

Nicotine And Methylphenidate Chornic Exposure On Adult Cannabinoid Receptor Agonist (Cp 55,940) Place Conditioning In Male Rats, Christopher P. Plant

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

A problematic connection has been reported between those who use nicotine related products alone or in combination with ADHD medications, like methylphenidate (MPH), in late childhood or early adolescence and the increased likelihood of later marijuana abuse in adulthood. Pre-clinical studies have found that the use of nicotine during the early adolescence period produces enduring changes to the endocannabinoid system in the brain. Since CB agonists, like marijuana, exert their effect through the eCB system, it is possible that early nicotine use may alter the rewarding nature of CB agonists in adulthood. In addition, MPH has also been shown to …


Importance Of The D2 Receptor For One- And Multi-Trial Psychostimulant-Induced Behavioral Sensitization In Preweanling Rats, Martha A. Mohd-Yusof Jun 2016

Importance Of The D2 Receptor For One- And Multi-Trial Psychostimulant-Induced Behavioral Sensitization In Preweanling Rats, Martha A. Mohd-Yusof

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

The neural mechanisms mediating one-trial and multi-trial behavioral sensitization during early ontogeny are poorly understood. The purpose of this thesis was to assess the importance of D2-like receptors for the induction of cocaine- and methamphetamine-induced one-trial and multi-trial behavioral sensitization during the middle and late preweanling period. In a series of four experiments, rats were injected with saline or the selective dopamine D2-like receptor antagonist raclopride 15 min prior to treatment with the indirect dopamine agonists cocaine or methamphetamine. Acute control groups received two injections of saline. The pretreatment regimens occurred on either PND 16 or PND 20 (one-trial behavioral …