Epinephrine, Norepinephrine, and Acetylcholine as Conditioned Stimuli for Avoidance Behavior

“…In the Pavlovian conditioning field, there has been a long history of studying learning processes involving interoceptive stimuli as CSs and modulators (e.g., Pavlov 1927;Bykov 1957;Cook et al 1960;Doty 1961;Davidson 1993;Bevins 2009). Despite this history, until now, there does not appear to be a clear demonstration that an interoceptive Pavlovian stimulus functioned as a conditioned inhibitor.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Nicotine trained as a negative feature passes the retardation-of-acquisition and summation tests of a conditioned inhibitor

Murray

Walker

et al. 2011

Learn. Mem.

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Nicotine functions as a negative feature in a Pavlovian discriminated goal-tracking task. Whether withholding of responding to the conditional stimulus (CS) reflects nicotine functioning as a conditioned inhibitor is unknown. Accordingly, the present research sought to determine whether nicotine trained as a negative feature passed the retardation-of-acquisition and summation tests, thus characterizing it as a pharmacological (interoceptive) conditioned inhibitor. In the retardation test, rats received either nicotine (0.4 mg/kg) or chlordiazepoxide (5 mg/kg) negative feature training in which the drug state signaled when a 15-sec light CS would not be paired with sucrose; light was paired with sucrose on intermixed saline sessions. Following acquisition of the discrimination, both groups received nicotine CS training in which sucrose was intermittently available on nicotine but not intermixed saline sessions. Acquisition of conditioned responding to the nicotine CS was slower in the nicotine negative feature group than in the chlordiazepoxide negative feature group. In the summation test, rats were assigned to either the nicotine negative feature group or a pseudoconditioning control. In this control, the light CS was paired with sucrose on half the nicotine and half the saline sessions. Both groups also received excitatory training in which a white noise CS was paired with sucrose. The summation test consisted of presenting the white noise in conjunction with nicotine. Conditioned responding evoked by the white noise was decreased in the negative feature but not the pseudoconditioning group. Combined, the results provide the first evidence that an interoceptive stimulus (nicotine) can become a conditioned inhibitor.

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“…The study of interoceptive stimuli was later extended to the peripheral administration of ligands (e.g., Cook, Davidson, Davis, & Kelleher, 1960). Of particular relevance to the present discussion is the extension of this research to the pharmacological effects of abused drugs.…”

Section: Interoceptive Pavlovian Conditioning: a Historical Frameworkmentioning

confidence: 99%

Altering the Motivational Function of Nicotine through Conditioning Processes

Bevins

2008

Nebraska Symposium on Motivation

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Epinephrine, Norepinephrine, and Acetylcholine as Conditioned Stimuli for Avoidance Behavior

Cited by 59 publications

References 3 publications

Discriminative Stimulus Functions of Drugs: Interpretations

Discriminative Stimulus Functions of Drugs: Interpretations

Nicotine trained as a negative feature passes the retardation-of-acquisition and summation tests of a conditioned inhibitor

Altering the Motivational Function of Nicotine through Conditioning Processes

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