Abstract
The authors used rats to study the impact of a history of opiate exposures on behavioral and autonomic responses to restraint stress. Brief restraint (30 min) provoked tachycardia and a presser response, anxiety (as indexed by social interaction), grooming, and reduced exploration. The pressor response was reduced at 1 day, but not 7 days, after last opiate exposure; tachycardia was unaffected (Experiment 1). Stress-induced anxiety was potentiated 1 and 7 days after last opiate exposure (Experiment 2), and this potentiation was a function of dose (Experiment 3) and duration (Experiment 4) of opiate exposure. The results show that a history of opiate exposures alters vulnerability to stress and has implications for understanding coping, anxiety, and emotionality in former opiate users.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 1034-1041 |
Number of pages | 8 |
Journal | Behavioral Neuroscience |
Volume | 119 |
Issue number | 4 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - Aug 2005 |
Externally published | Yes |
Keywords
- Anxiety
- Blood pressure
- Heart rate
- Opiate
- Stress