Differential expression of transcription factors in the accumbens of an animal model of ADHD.

Transcription factors have been used as neuronal markers in the nucleus accumbens (ACB) of male juvenile spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR), an animal model of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), to trace putative neural substrates. In SHR, immunocytochemistry and PC-assisted image analysis showed lower expression of pan-fos, c-fos, zif/268 in the shell, and the c-fos and zif/268 in the core, with an increased level of Jun-B in the core. The differential lower basal expression of transcription factors in the ACB of an animal model of ADHD implies a reduced number of modules and might represent a neural substrate of the attention deficits seen in SHR and children with ADHD at low motivational levels.