Chunk #15 — Discussion — Reduced DAMGO-stimulated [35S]GTPγS binding in the NAc core of female G/G mice may contribute to impaired morphine-induced conditioned place preference
The NAc is a key neural substrate involved in rewarding properties of drugs of abuse, including morphine (Koob, Sanna, and Bloom, 1998). We found that in the NAc core female G/G mice displayed significantly lower DAMGO-stimulated [35S]GTPγS binding than female A/A mice; however, there is no difference between male A/A and male G/G mice. These differences are likely to contribute to the previous report that female G/G mice failed to show a morphine-induced conditioned place preference, in contrast to female A/A, male A/A and male G/G mice (Mague et al., 2009).
