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Pavlovian Extinction of the Discriminative Stimulus Effects of Nicotine and Ethanol in Rats Varies as a Function of Context

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Abstract

Operant extinction contingencies can undermine the discriminative stimulus effects of drugs. Here, nicotine (0.4 mg/kg) and ethanol (0.8 g/kg) first functioned as either an SD or SD, in SΔ, in a counterbalanced one-lever go/no-go (across sessions) operant drug discrimination procedure. Pavlovian extinction in the training context (levers removed) grossly undermined the response rates and discriminative stimulus functions of nicotine, but not ethanol; presentation of the drugs in the home cage had no impact on stimulus control for either drug but lowered overall response rates. This result was replicated between, and within, groups of rats that differed in the order of extinction phases. These data suggest that stimulus reinforcer relationships play a role in the discriminative stimulus effects of drugs with regard to response rate, but vary pharmacologically and as a function of the context in which extinction occurs.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychology, Saint Anselm College Saint Anselm College, 100 St. Anselm Dr., Manchester, NH 03102, USA

    Joseph R. Troisi II PhD

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  1. Joseph R. Troisi II PhD
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Correspondence to Joseph R. Troisi II PhD.

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This research was made possible thanks to the support of a Saint Anselm College Summer Research Grant. Special thanks to Kyle Beauchemin for his relentless time and diligence in the lab.

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Troisi, J.R. Pavlovian Extinction of the Discriminative Stimulus Effects of Nicotine and Ethanol in Rats Varies as a Function of Context. Psychol Rec 61, 199–212 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03395756

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