PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Fiorino, Dennis F.
AU  - Phillips, Anthony G.
TI  - Facilitation of Sexual Behavior and Enhanced Dopamine Efflux in the Nucleus Accumbens of Male Rats after<span class="sc">d</span>-Amphetamine-Induced Behavioral Sensitization
AID  - 10.1523/JNEUROSCI.19-01-00456.1999
DP  - 1999 Jan 01
TA  - The Journal of Neuroscience
PG  - 456--463
VI  - 19
IP  - 1
4099  - http://www.jneurosci.org/content/19/1/456.short
4100  - http://www.jneurosci.org/content/19/1/456.full
SO  - J. Neurosci.1999 Jan 01; 19
AB  - Behavioral sensitization caused by repeated and intermittent administration of psychostimulants, such as cocaine andd-amphetamine, is accompanied by enhanced function in limbic-motor circuitry that is involved in the generation of motivated behavior. The present microdialysis study investigated the effect ofd-amphetamine-induced sensitization on dopamine (DA) efflux in the nucleus accumbens (NAC) of male rats during sexual behavior. Male rats were given one injection of d-amphetamine (1.5 mg/kg, i.p.) or saline every other day for a total of 10 injections. Three weeks after discontinuation of drug treatment, rats were tested for sexual behavior during a test in which microdialysis was performed. There was an augmented efflux of DA in the NAC ofd-amphetamine-sensitized rats compared with nonsensitized control rats when a receptive female was present behind a screen (35 vs 17%). Sensitized rats exhibited facilitated sexual behavior when the screen was removed, as indicated by a significantly shorter latency to mount and an overall increase in the amount of copulatory behavior. Although there was a significant increase in NAC DA concentrations from baseline in both sensitized and nonsensitized rats during copulation, there was a greater increase in DA efflux in the NAC of sensitized rats during the first 10 min copulatory sample (60 vs 37%). These results demonstrate that behavioral sensitization caused by repeated psychostimulant administration can “cross-sensitize” to a natural behavior, such as sex, and that increased NAC DA release may contribute to the facilitation of appetitive and consummatory aspects of this behavior.