Dopamine transporter inhibition is necessary for cocaine-induced increases in dendritic spine density in the nucleus accumbens

Repeated exposure to cocaine produces changes in the nervous system that facilitate drug-seeking behaviors. These drug-seeking behaviors have been studied with animal models, such as cocaine-induced locomotor sensitization. Cocaine is hypothesized to induce locomotor sensitization by neural changes, including an increase in the density of spines on the dendrites of neurons in the nucleus accumbens (NAC). However, how cocaine increases dendritic spine density in the NAC has been difficult to discern because cocaine inhibits the function of multiple targets, including the transporters for dopamine, serotonin, and norepinephrine. Previously, our lab created a tool that is useful for determining how inhibiting the dopamine transporter (DAT) contributes to the effects of cocaine by generating mice that express a cocaine-insensitive DAT (DAT-CI mice). In this study, we used DAT-CI mice to determine the contribution of DAT inhibition in cocaine-induced increases in dendritic spine density in the NAC. We repeatedly injected DAT-CI mice with either cocaine or saline, and measured both dendritic spine density in the NAC and locomotor activity. Unlike wild-type mice, DAT-CI mice did not show an increase in dendritic spine density in the NAC or in locomotor activity in response to repeated injections of cocaine. These data show that cocaine-induced increases in dendritic spine density in the NAC require DAT inhibition. Thus, DAT-inhibition may play a role in mediating the long-lasting neural changes associated with drug addiction.