College of Korean Medicine, Daegu Haany University, Daegu, South Korea.
Clinical Medicine Division, Korea Institute of Oriental Medicine, Daejeon, South Korea.
Addict Biol. 2021 Jan;26(1):e12862. doi: 10.1111/adb.12862. Epub 2020 Jan 29.
Methamphetamine (METH) enhances dopamine (DA) transmission in the mesolimbic system implicated in its reinforcing effects. Our previous studies have shown that acupuncture attenuates drug-seeking behaviors by modulating GABAergic transmission in the ventral tegmental area and DA release in the nucleus accumbens (NAc) of the striatum. The effects of acupuncture on METH-induced behaviors and its mediation by neural pathways remain a relatively understudied area of research. The central amygdala (CeA) plays a critical role in physiological and behavioral responses to somatosensory and drug stimuli and has been implicated in negative reinforcement. Thus, we evaluated the role of the CeA in acupuncture effects on locomotor activity, positive affective states, and DA release in the NAc following acute administration of METH. Acupuncture at acupoint HT7 reduced locomotor activity, 50-kHz ultrasonic vocalizations (USVs), and NAc DA release following systemic injection of METH, which was prevented by electrolytic lesions or optogenetic inhibition of the CeA. Acupuncture alone excited CeA neurons and reversed the suppression of CeA neurons induced by METH. These results suggest that acupuncture can relieve psychomotor responses and positive affective states following METH by inhibiting NAc DA release and this effect is mediated by activation of CeA neurons.
甲基苯丙胺（METH）增强中脑边缘系统中的多巴胺（DA）传递，该系统与强化效应有关。我们之前的研究表明，针刺通过调节腹侧被盖区的 GABA 能传递和纹状体伏隔核（NAc）中的 DA 释放来减弱觅药行为。针刺对 METH 诱导的行为的影响及其对神经通路的介导作用仍然是一个相对研究较少的领域。杏仁中央核（CeA）在躯体感觉和药物刺激的生理和行为反应中起着关键作用，并与负强化有关。因此，我们评估了 CeA 在针刺对急性 METH 给药后 NA 中运动活动、阳性情感状态和 DA 释放的影响中的作用。HT7 穴位针刺可降低运动活动、50-kHz 超声发声（USV）和 NA 中 DA 的释放，而 CeA 的电解损伤或光遗传抑制可防止这种情况发生。针刺本身可兴奋 CeA 神经元，并逆转 METH 诱导的 CeA 神经元抑制。这些结果表明，针刺通过抑制 NAc DA 释放缓解 METH 后精神运动反应和阳性情感状态，而这种作用是通过激活 CeA 神经元介导的。
