Examination Of Empathy-Like Behavior in Nicotine-Preferring Rat Lines and Controls
Project no. 21454 · Status: Kapanmış · 2020
Summary
Introduction/Purpose: Addiction is one of the most important health problems in the whole world; This problem affects not only the addicted person, but also the environment and society. The aim of this thesis is to reveal how the direct effects of genetically addictive lineage and the addictive agent affect empathy-related behaviors. Nicotine, an addictive agent; is to investigate the relationship with empathy, which is very important for social interaction and establishing interpersonal relationships, to understand the effects of addiction on interaction between people and to contribute to the development of treatment strategies. Method: Evaluated by behavioral tests in nicotine-preferring strains (NT) (10 males/10 females) and controls (10 male/10 females) Sprague–Dawley rats. All experimental animals were caged in pairs and the adaptation process was started for 3 weeks. Handling applications were also made during the adaptation process. Empathy-like behavior experiment and behavior experiments (elevated plus maze test and open field test) were conducted. After 4 weeks of nicotine application, post empathy experiment (2nd empathy experiment) and behavior experiments were repeated. After the behavioral experiments, the animals were decapitated. Cotinine and coritcosterone levels were measured in the blood. Amygdala and PFC regions were dissected from their brains and OXTR and vasopressin levels in brain tissues were measured by ELISA Test. The research is based on the hypothesis that descent from an addicted ancestry and the addictive agent can influence empathy-like behavior. Accordingly, in empathy behavior: time to open the lid and blood: cotinine (nicotine metabolite), corticosterone (Stress Indicator) levels of oxytocin and vasopressin in brain tissue, it was assumed that anxiety levels may vary in behavioral experiments. Findings/Results: It shows that males from nicotine lineage open the lid in a longer time, unlike all other groups,. Nicotine administration did not cause any significant changes in results. However, ancestry and gender levels were found to be significant. The groups were found to be different when the group was taken as the independent variable. Only males of nicotine lineage we found to be different from other groups. Locomotor activity (LA) control females were determined differently from other groups. Control females were found to be more mobile than all groups. No significant difference was found in anxiety tests cotinine levels were found to be higher in nicotine-preferring rats. As with cotinine levels, corticosterone levels in rats that preferred nicotine were also found to be higher than. No significant differentiation was found in the levels of PFC and amygdala ADH and oxytocin receptors in brain regions. The gender difference was at the level of p= 0.059 and did not reach a significant level. As a result, it was determined that coming from a dependent lineage decreased empathy-like behavior especially i in males. Keywords; Empathy, Behavior, Addiction, Nicotine, Genetic