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Memory and psychostimulants: modulation of Pavlovian fear conditioning by amphetamine in C57BL/6 mice

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Abstract

Rationale and objectives

With the use of prescription stimulants on the rise, it is important to examine the cognitive effects of low and moderate doses of stimulants rather than only those typical of addicts.

Materials and methods

The present study examined the effects a range of doses (0.005–8 mg/kg) of d-amphetamine sulfate on cued and contextual Pavlovian fear conditioning in mice.

Results

In agreement with previous research, subjects administered with a moderately high dose of amphetamine (8 mg/kg) pre-training, typical of what addicts might take, displayed impaired conditioned freezing when tested off-drug. Alternately, subjects injected with a very low dose of amphetamine (0.005, 0.025, or 0.05 mg/kg) pre-training, similar to the therapeutic doses for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, displayed enhanced memory when tested off-drug. A control study showed that these effects were not due to state-dependent learning.

Conclusions

Thus, dose is a critical determinant of the cognitive effects of psychostimulants.

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Acknowledgments

We thank Jakyong Lee, Angela Smith, and Jason Yeatman for excellent technical assistance; we also thank Tristan Shuman and Jennifer Sage for helpful comments on the manuscript. SCW was supported by an NSF Graduate Research Fellowship. These studies were supported by NIH grant (DA020041) and Hellman Fellowship to SGA. The above experiments comply with the current laws of the United States, the country in which they were performed.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Molecular Cognition Laboratory, Department of Psychology, University of California, San Diego, 9500 Gilman Dr. MC 0109, La Jolla, San Diego, CA, 92093-0109, USA

    Suzanne C. Wood & Stephan G. Anagnostaras

  2. Program in Neurosciences, University of California, San Diego, 9500 Gilman Dr. MC 0109, La Jolla, San Diego, CA, 92093-0109, USA

    Stephan G. Anagnostaras

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  1. Suzanne C. Wood
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  2. Stephan G. Anagnostaras
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Correspondence to Suzanne C. Wood.

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Wood, S.C., Anagnostaras, S.G. Memory and psychostimulants: modulation of Pavlovian fear conditioning by amphetamine in C57BL/6 mice. Psychopharmacology 202, 197–206 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00213-008-1185-9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00213-008-1185-9

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