Pre-clinical evidence that methylphenidate increases motivation and/or reward preference to search for high value rewards

0570433 - FGÚ 2024 RIV NL eng J - Journal Article
Pulido, L. N. - Pochapski, J. A. - Sugi, A. - Esaki, J. Y. - Stresser, J. L. - Sanchez, W. N. - Baltazar, G. - Levčík, David - Fuentes, R. - Da Cunha, C.
Pre-clinical evidence that methylphenidate increases motivation and/or reward preference to search for high value rewards.
Behavioural Brain Research. Roč. 437, 2 February (2023), č. článku 114065. ISSN 0166-4328. E-ISSN 1872-7549
R&D Projects: GA MZd(CZ) NU20-04-00147
Institutional support: RVO:67985823
Keywords : Methylphenidate * spatial memory * motivation * incentive salience * dopamine * attention deficit hyperactivity disorder
OECD category: Neurosciences (including psychophysiology
Impact factor: 2.7, year: 2022
Method of publishing: Limited access
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bbr.2022.114065

Methylphenidate is a stimulant used to treat attention deficit and hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). In the last decade, illicit use of methylphenidate has increased among healthy young adults, who consume the drug under the assumption that it will improve cognitive performance. However, the studies that aimed to assess the methylphenidate effects on memory are not consistent. Here, we tested whether the effect of methylphenidate on a spatial memory task can be explained as a motivational and/or a reward effect. We tested the effects of acute and chronic i.p. administration of 0.3, 1 or 3 mg/kg of methylphenidate on motivation, learning and memory by using the 8-arm radial maze task. Adult male Wistar rats learned that 3 of the 8 arms of the maze were consistently baited with 1, 3, or 6 sucrose pellets, and the number of entries and reentries into reinforced and non-reinforced arms of the maze were scored. Neither acute nor chronic (20 days) methylphenidate treatment affected the number of entries in the non-baited arms. However, chronic, but not acute, 1–3 mg/kg methylphenidate increased the number of reentries in the higher reward arms, which suggests a motivational/rewarding effect rather than a working memory deficit. In agreement with this hypothesis, the methylphenidate treatment also decreased the approach latency to the higher reward arms, increased the approach latency to the low reward arm, and increased the time spent in the high, but not low, reward arm. These findings suggest that methylphenidate may act more as a motivational enhancer rather than a cognitive enhancer in healthy people.
Permanent Link: https://hdl.handle.net/11104/0341730