Department of Psychiatry, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
Br J Psychiatry. 2011 Nov;199(5):391-7. doi: 10.1192/bjp.bp.110.084178. Epub 2011 May 4.
Low serotonin transmission is thought to increase susceptibility to a wide range of substance use disorders and impulsive traits.
To investigate the effects of lowered serotonin on cocaine-induced (1.0 mg/kg cocaine, self-administered intranasally) dopamine responses and drug craving.
In non-dependent cocaine users, serotonin transmission was reduced using the acute tryptophan depletion method. Striatal dopamine responses were measured using positron emission tomography with [(11)C]raclopride.
Acute tryptophan depletion increased drug craving and striatal dopamine responses to cocaine. These acute tryptophan depletion-induced increases did not occur in the absence of cocaine.
The results suggest that low serotonin transmission can increase dopaminergic and appetitive responses to cocaine. These findings might identify a mechanism by which individuals with low serotonin are at elevated risk for both substance use disorders and comorbid conditions.
低血清素传递被认为会增加对广泛的物质使用障碍和冲动特征的易感性。
研究降低血清素对可卡因诱导的（1.0mg/kg 可卡因，鼻内自我给药）多巴胺反应和药物渴求的影响。
在非依赖可卡因使用者中，使用急性色氨酸耗竭方法降低血清素传递。使用 [(11)C]raclopride 通过正电子发射断层扫描测量纹状体多巴胺反应。
急性色氨酸耗竭增加了可卡因引起的药物渴求和纹状体多巴胺反应。这些急性色氨酸耗竭诱导的增加在没有可卡因的情况下不会发生。
结果表明，低血清素传递可以增加对可卡因的多巴胺能和食欲反应。这些发现可能确定了血清素水平低的个体同时患有物质使用障碍和共病的风险增加的机制。
