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• Higuera-Matas, A
• Miguens, M
• Olmo, N
• García-Lecumberri, C
• Ambrosio, E
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• Higuera-Matas, A
• Miguens, M
• Olmo, N
• García-Lecumberri, C
• Ambrosio, E
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• Higuera-Matas, A
• Miguens, M
• Olmo, N
• García-Lecumberri, C
• Ambrosio, E

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Pharmaceuticals 2011, 4(10), 1315-1327; doi:10.3390/ph4101315

Review

Neural Changes Developed during the Extinction of Cocaine Self-Administration Behavior

Alejandro Higuera-Matas ¹ , Miguel Miguens ² , Nuria del Olmo ³ , Carmen García-Lecumberri ¹  and Emilio Ambrosio ^1,*

¹ Department of Psychobiology, School of Psychology, UNED, C/Juan del Rosal 10, 28040 Madrid, Spain ² Department of Basic Psychology I, School of Psychology, UNED, C/Juan del Rosal 10, 28040 Madrid, Spain ³ Department of Pharmaceutical and Nutritional Sciences, School of Pharmacy, San Pablo-CEU University, Urb. Montepríncipe, Boadilla del Monte, Madrid, Spain

* Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.

Received: 8 September 2011 / Accepted: 20 September 2011 / Published: 13 October 2011

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Drug Abuse Targets)

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Abstract: The high rate of recidivism in cocaine addiction after prolonged periods of abstinence poses a significant problem for the effective treatment of this condition. Moreover, the neurobiological basis of this relapse phenomenon remains poorly understood. In this review, we will discuss the evidence currently available regarding the neurobiological changes during the extinction of cocaine self-administration. Specifically, we will focus on alterations in the dopaminergic, opioidergic, glutamatergic, cholinergic, serotoninergic and CRF systems described in self-administration experiments and extinction studies after chronic cocaine administration. We will also discuss the differences related to contingent versus non-contingent cocaine administration, which highlights the importance of environmental cues on drug effects and extinction. The findings discussed in this review may aid the development of more effective therapeutic approaches to treat cocaine relapse.

Keywords: cocaine self-administration; extinction; neuroadaptive changes

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