Chunk #24 — Results — Widespread effects of cocaine and withdrawal on catecholaminergic, GABAergic, cholinergic, glutamatergic, and endocannabinoid pathways
A small population of giant aspiny cholinergic interneurons is found in the NAc (Threlfell and Cragg, 2011); expression of both the plasma membrane choline transporter (Cht1), which provides the rate-limiting substrate, and choline acetyltransferase (ChAT) was increased by Cocaine and further increased by Withdrawal (Figure 7). Expression of each of the major nicotinic ACh receptor subunits found in the NAc (Chrna4, Chrna7, and Chrnb2) and three muscarinic ACh receptors (Chrm2, Chrm3, and Chrm5) showed sustained increases, many verified by qPCR.
