* Role of cannabinoid CB2 receptor in the reinforcing actions of ethanol.
- This study examines the role of the cannabinoid CB2 receptor (CB2 r) on the vulnerability to ethanol consumption. The time-related and dose-response effects of ethanol on rectal temperature, handling-induced convulsions (HIC) and blood ethanol concentrations were evaluated in CB2 KO and wild-type (WT) mice. The reinforcing properties of ethanol were evaluated in conditioned place preference (CPP), preference and voluntary ethanol consumption and oral ethanol self-administration. Water-maintained behavior schedule was performed to evaluate the degree of motivation induced by a natural stimulus. Preference for non-alcohol tastants assay was performed to evaluate the differences in taste sensitivity. Tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) and μ-opioid receptor gene expressions were also measured in the ventral tegmental area and nucleus accumbens (NAcc), respectively. CB2 KO mice presented increased HIC score, ethanol-CPP, voluntary ethanol consumption and preference, acquisition of ethanol self-administration, and increased motivation to drink ethanol compared with WT mice. No differences were found between genotypes in the water-maintained behavior schedule or preference for non-alcohol tastants. Naïve CB2 KO mice presented increased μ-opioid receptor gene expression in NAcc. Acute ethanol administration (1-2 g/kg) increased TH and μ-opioid receptor gene expressions in CB2 KO mice, whereas the lower dose of ethanol decreased TH gene expression in WT mice. These results suggest that deletion of the CB2 r gene increased preference for and vulnerability to ethanol consumption, at least in part, by increased ethanol-induced sensitivity of the TH and μ-opioid receptor gene expressions in mesolimbic neurons. Future studies will determine the role of CB2 r as a target for the treatment of problems related with alcohol consumption.
Overview of noun study
The noun study has 10 senses (first 8 from tagged texts)
1. (90) survey, study -- (a detailed critical inspection)
2. (17) study, work -- (applying the mind to learning and understanding a subject (especially by
reading); "mastering a second language requires a lot of work"; "no schools offer graduate study in
interior design")
3. (6) report, study, written report -- (a written document describing the findings of some
individual or group; "this accords with the recent study by Hill and Dale")
4. (6) study -- (a state of deep mental absorption; "she is in a deep study")
5. (6) study -- (a room used for reading and writing and studying; "he knocked lightly on the closed
door of the study")
6. (3) discipline, subject, subject area, subject field, field, field of study, study, bailiwick --
(a branch of knowledge; "in what discipline is his doctorate?"; "teachers should be well trained in
their subject"; "anthropology is the study of human beings")
7. (2) sketch, study -- (preliminary drawing for later elaboration; "he made several studies before
starting to paint")
8. (1) cogitation, study -- (attentive consideration and meditation; "after much cogitation he
rejected the offer")
9. study -- (someone who memorizes quickly and easily (as the lines for a part in a play); "he is a
quick study")
10. study -- (a composition intended to develop one aspect of the performer's technique; "a study in
spiccato bowing")
Overview of verb study
The verb study has 6 senses (first 6 from tagged texts)
1. (73) analyze, analyse, study, examine, canvass, canvas -- (consider in detail and subject to an
analysis in order to discover essential features or meaning; "analyze a sonnet by Shakespeare";
"analyze the evidence in a criminal trial"; "analyze your real motives")
2. (17) study -- (be a student; follow a course of study; be enrolled at an institute of learning)
3. (15) study, consider -- (give careful consideration to; "consider the possibility of moving")
4. (13) learn, study, read, take -- (be a student of a certain subject; "She is reading for the bar
exam")
5. (5) study, hit the books -- (learn by reading books; "He is studying geology in his room"; "I
have an exam next week; I must hit the books now")
6. (2) study, meditate, contemplate -- (think intently and at length, as for spiritual purposes; "He
is meditating in his study")
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