Cited by 79Nicotinic Acetylcholine Receptors StudyMemory and Neural MechanismsSmoking Behavior and Cessation

Developmental effects of acute, chronic, and withdrawal from chronic nicotine on fear conditioning

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Portugal, George S., Wilkinson, Derek S., Turner, Jill R., Blendy, Julie A., Gould, Thomas J.·2012·Neurobiology of Learning and Memory

Abstract

Pre-adolescence and adolescence are developmental periods associated with increased vulnerability for tobacco addiction, and exposure to tobacco during these periods may lead to long-lasting changes in behavioral and neuronal plasticity. The present study examined the short- and long-term effects of nicotine and nicotine withdrawal on fear conditioning in pre-adolescent, adolescent, and adult mice, and potential underlying substrates that may mediate the developmental effects of nicotine, such as changes in nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (nAChR) binding, CREB expression, and nicotine metabolism. Age-related differences existed in sensitivity to the effects of acute nicotine, chronic nicotine and nicotine withdrawal on contextual fear conditioning (no changes in cued fear conditioning were seen); younger mice were more sensitive to the acute effects and less sensitive to the effects of nicotine withdrawal 24 h post treatment cessation. Developmental differences in nAChR binding were associated with the effects of nicotine withdrawal on contextual learning. Developmental differences in nicotine metabolism and CREB expression were also observed, but were not related to the effects of nicotine withdrawal on contextual learning 24 h post treatment. Chronic nicotine exposure during pre-adolescence or adolescence, however, produced long-lasting impairments in contextual learning that were observed during adulthood, whereas adult chronic nicotine exposure did not. These developmental effects could be related to changes in CREB. Overall, there is a developmental shift in the effects of nicotine on hippocampus-dependent learning and developmental exposure to nicotine results in adult cognitive deficits; these changes in cognition may play an important role in the development and maintenance of nicotine addiction.

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Crossref · 10.1016/j.nlm.2012.04.003

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  • Nicotine is metabolized faster in rodents during pre-adolescence (P23-25) than in adults, producing lower blood levels, but no pharmacokinetic differences are seen during the adolescent period starting at P28.

    “Although nicotine is more rapidly metabolized in rodents during pre-adolescence (P23–25) than in adults, leading to lower blood levels, no pharmacokinetic differences have been seen during the adolescent period starting at P28 (Portugal et al., 2012; Ahsan et al., 2014; Craig et al., 2014; Arany et al., 2017).”

    From Unique, long-term effects of nicotine on adolescent brain. (2020) · cites this paper as Portugal et al., 2012

    Results §3.4 finds no difference in plasma nicotine levels among pre-adolescent, adolescent, and adult mice after acute or chronic treatment; the Discussion likewise reports no age-related difference in nicotine metabolism. This contradicts the claimed faster metabolism and lower blood nicotine levels in pre-adolescents. The absence of a detected difference between adolescents and adults is supported, but Methods §2.1 places the adolescent group at PND 38 at the start of experiments, not P28. (LLM, conf=0.88)

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  • In rodents, nAChR upregulation in dorsal hippocampus is associated with withdrawal-related deficits in hippocampal learning.

    “Similarly, in rodents, nAChR upregulation in the dorsal hippocampus was associated with withdrawal-related deficits in hippocampal learning (Gould et al. 2012; Portugal et al. 2012).”

    From Nicotine Withdrawal (2015) · cites this paper as Portugal et al. 2012

    The Discussion reports that adult mice showed both hippocampal nAChR upregulation and impaired contextual fear conditioning after nicotine withdrawal; the Results (§3.5) confirm the receptor finding. The paper describes measurements in the hippocampus, not specifically the dorsal hippocampus, so that anatomical detail is unsupported. Page numbers are unavailable in our copy. (LLM, conf=0.86)

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  • Nicotine withdrawal produces impairments in both contextual learning and attention-based models.

    “Conversely, nicotine withdrawal produces impairments in both contextual learning and attention-based models (Semenova et al. 2007; Gould et al. 2012; Portugal et al. 2012; Poole et al. 2014; Yildirim et al. 2015).”

    From The long-term cognitive consequences of adolescent exposure to recreational drugs of abuse (2018) · cites this paper as Portugal et al. 2012

    The Results (§3.3; page unavailable) report that nicotine withdrawal impaired contextual fear conditioning in mice. The paper does not report an attention-based model or task; it found no effect on cued fear conditioning. Thus it supports the contextual-learning part, but not the attention-based part. (LLM, conf=0.88)

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  • Other research points to a role for hippocampus in ANE-induced cognitive deficits.

    “Other research points to a role for the hippocampus in ANE-induced cognitive deficits [196, 207, 208].”

    From Consequences of adolescent drug use (2023) · cites this paper as [208]

  • In both adolescent and adult rodents, nicotine exposure leads to alterations of the cholinergic system in the hippocampus.

    “In both adolescent and adult rodents, nicotine exposure leads to alterations of the cholinergic system in the HC (Trauth et al. 2000; Doura et al. 2008; Portugal et al. 2012).”

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Authors
Portugal, G. S., Wilkinson, D. S., Turner, J. R., Blendy, J. A., & Gould, T. J.
Affiliations
  • Temple University (US)
  • University of Pennsylvania (US)
Corresponding author
Gould, Thomas J.
Venue
Neurobiology of Learning and Memory
Publisher
Elsevier BV
Published
2012-05
Volume
97
Issue
4
Pages
482-494
ISSN
1074-7427 (ISSN-L)
OpenAlex
W2037062942
Cited by
79
References
93
Citations by year
2025: 5 · 2024: 4 · 2023: 3 · 2022: 3 · 2021: 6 · 2020: 6 · 2019: 6 · 2018: 7 · 2017: 3 · 2016: 12 · 2015: 7 · 2014: 7 · 2013: 7 · 2012: 3
FWCI
3.08
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • Neurobiology of Learning and Memory (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (acceptedVersion)
  • PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
Funders
  • Virginia Commonwealth University
  • National Institute on Drug Abuse (DA017949, DA024787 TG)
  • National Cancer Institute (CA143187)
Topics
  • Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Molecular Biology › Nicotinic Acetylcholine Receptors Study
  • Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Memory and Neural Mechanisms
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Physiology › Smoking Behavior and Cessation
Keywords
nicotine, nicotine withdrawal, chronic nicotine exposure, fear conditioning, contextual fear, contextual learning, CREB, nicotine metabolism, developmental vulnerability, late childhood, adolescence, hippocampus-dependent learning, cognitive impairment, nicotine dependence, mice
MeSH terms
Age Factors, Animals, Conditioning, Psychological, Fear, Hippocampus, Male, Nicotine, Receptors, Nicotinic, Substance Withdrawal Syndrome, Tobacco Use Disorder, Up-Regulation, Nicotinic Agonists, CREB-Binding Protein, Mice

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