Extinction and drug-induced reinstatement of cocaine seeking following self-administration or conditioned place preference in adolescent and adult rats

Abstract

Adolescence marks a particularly vulnerable period to developing substance use disorders, and people who start using drugs in adolescence are more likely to relapse. A limited number of studies have investigated age difference in relapse following re-exposure to the drug after a period of abstinence. Using a cocaine self-administration paradigm, we showed no age difference in acquisition or extinction of self-administration. Interestingly, adolescent rats displayed impaired cocaine-primed reinstatement of cocaine seeking. Using the same dose as that self-administered in the first experiment, we then investigated age differences in acquisition and extinction of conditioned place preference, a..