A new place conditioning paradigm to study tolerance to opiates in mice

Neuroreport. 1999 Feb 25;10(3):517-21. doi: 10.1097/00001756-199902250-00014.

Abstract

Tolerance to the rewarding properties of morphine was investigated in mice using a new conditioned place preference (CPP) procedure. Four pairings of morphine with specific environmental cues induced a significant CPP for the drug-paired cues. Further opiate conditioning trials in the presence of the same environmental cues revealed no change in the drug-induced CPP on repeated test sessions. Subsequent exposure of the same animals to conditioning trials by pairing morphine with a set of novel environmental cues showed that the opiate was still able to produce a CPP in mice treated with a total of 16 morphine injections. The present CPP paradigm may prove useful to investigate tolerance to the rewarding properties of drugs of abuse.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Choice Behavior / physiology*
  • Conditioning, Psychological / physiology*
  • Cues
  • Drug Tolerance
  • Environment*
  • Male
  • Mice
  • Mice, Inbred Strains
  • Morphine / pharmacology*
  • Reward

Substances

  • Morphine