Rationale

In classical conditioning, sign-tracking reflects behavior directed toward a conditioned stimulus (CS) in expectation of a reward (unconditioned stimulus, US); in contrast, goal-tracking describes behavior directed toward the location of delivery of a US. As cues previously paired with drugs of abuse promote drug-seeking and drug-taking behavior in both animals and humans and thus contribute to the severity of substance abuse, sign-tracking may represent a maladaptive cue-focused behavior that may increase addiction vulnerability as compared to goal-tracking. Recent studies do, in fact, support this possibility. Previous work in this area has focused primarily on paradigms using relatively limited exposure to drug rather than extended drug intake.

Objectives

Here, we used the DSM-IV–based 3-criteria (3-CRIT) model and examined whether a relationship exists between sign- or goal-tracking phenotypes and the prevalence of criteria associated with addiction-like behavior following extended cocaine self-administration as measured in this model.

Methods

Forty-six male Sprague Dawley rats underwent a Pavlovian conditioned approach (PCA) procedure and were characterized along a continuum as goal-trackers (GTs), intermediates (INTs), or sign-trackers (STs). The animals were subsequently trained to intravenous self-administer cocaine during 45 self-administration (SA) sessions and characterized for the 3 criteria outlined in the model: persistence of drug-seeking, motivation for cocaine-taking, and resistance to punishment.

Results

We performed correlational analyses on the traits measured, finding no relationships between PCA score and addiction-like characteristics measured using the 3-CRIT model of addiction. However, STs showed significantly greater resistance to punishment than GTs.

Conclusions

Phenotyping along a continuum of PCA scores may not be a valid predictor for identifying vulnerability to the addiction-like behaviors examined using the 3-CRIT model. However, PCA phenotype may predict a single feature of the 3-CRIT model, resistance to punishment, among those rats classified as either STs or GTs.

中文翻译：

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体征和目标跟踪得分与长期自我服用可卡因后的成瘾行为无关

 基本原理

在经典条件反射中，信号跟踪反映了针对条件刺激（CS）的行为，以期获得奖励（无条件刺激，美国）；相反，目标跟踪描述了针对美国交付地点的行为。由于先前与滥用药物配对的线索会促进动物和人类的寻求药物和吸毒行为，从而加剧药物滥用的严重性，因此信号跟踪可能代表一种适应不良的以线索为中心的行为，可能会增加成瘾的脆弱性。目标跟踪。事实上，最近的研究确实支持这种可能性。该领域以前的工作主要集中于使用相对有限的药物暴露而不是延长药物摄入量的范例。

 目标

在这里，我们使用基于 DSM-IV 的三标准 (3-CRIT) 模型，并检查了符号或目标跟踪表型与长期可卡因自我给药后成瘾样行为相关标准的流行程度之间是否存在关系。如该模型中测量的。

 方法

46 只雄性 Sprague Dawley 大鼠接受了巴甫洛夫条件方法 (PCA) 程序，并沿着连续体被表征为目标跟踪器 (GT)、中间体 (INT) 或符号跟踪器 (ST)。随后，这些动物在 45 次自我给药 (SA) 疗程中接受静脉注射可卡因训练，并根据模型中概述的 3 个标准进行表征：持续寻求药物、吸食可卡因的动机和对惩罚的抵抗力。

 结果

我们对测量的特征进行了相关分析，发现 PCA 评分与使用成瘾 3-CRIT 模型测量的成瘾样特征之间没有关系。然而，STs 对惩罚的抵抗力明显高于 GTs。

 结论

沿着 PCA 评分的连续体进行表型分析可能不是识别使用 3-CRIT 模型检查的成瘾样行为脆弱性的有效预测因子。然而，PCA 表型可以预测 3-CRIT 模型的一个单一特征，即被分类为 ST 或 GT 的大鼠对惩罚的抵抗力。