• DOI:10.1007/s00213-007-0882-0
• Corpus ID: 54060

Effects of quinolinic acid-induced lesions of the nucleus accumbens core on inter-temporal choice: a quantitative analysis

@article{Bezzina2007EffectsOQ,
  title={Effects of quinolinic acid-induced lesions of the nucleus accumbens core on inter-temporal choice: a quantitative analysis},
  author={G. Bezzina and Timothy H. C. Cheung and Karim Asgari and C. L. Hampson and Simon C. Body and Christopher M. Bradshaw and Elem{\'e}r Szabadi and J. F. William Deakin and Ian Muir Anderson},
  journal={Psychopharmacology},
  year={2007},
  volume={195},
  pages={71-84}
}

• G. Bezzina, T. Cheung, +6 authors I. Anderson
• Published 22 July 2007
• Psychology, Biology
• Psychopharmacology

RationaleThere is evidence that lesions of the nucleus accumbens core (AcbC) promote preference for smaller earlier reinforcers over larger delayed reinforcers in inter-temporal choice paradigms. It is not known whether this reflects an effect of the lesion on the rate of delay discounting, on sensitivity to reinforcer magnitude, or both.AimWe examined the effect of AcbC lesions on inter-temporal choice using a quantitative method that allows effects on delay discounting to be distinguished from effects on sensitivity to reinforcer size.Materials and methodsSixteen rats received bilateral quinolinic acid-induced lesions of the AcbC; 14 received sham lesions. They were trained under a discrete-trials progressive delay schedule to press two levers (A and B) for a sucrose solution. Responses on A delivered 50 μl of the solution after a delay dA; responses on B delivered 100 μl after dB. dB increased across blocks of trials, while dA was manipulated across phases of the experiment. Indifference delay dB(50) (value of dB corresponding to 50% choice of B) was estimated in each phase, and linear indifference functions (dB(50) vs dA) derived.ResultsdB(50) increased linearly with dA (r2 > 0.95 in each group). The intercept of the indifference function was lower in the lesioned than the sham-lesioned group; slope did not differ between groups. The lesioned rats had extensive neuronal loss in the AcbC.ConclusionsThe results confirm that lesions of the AcbC promote preference for smaller, earlier reinforcers and suggest that this reflects an effect of the lesion on the rate of delay discounting.