Strain differences in the acquisition of nicotine-induced conditioned taste aversion and place preference

Lewis and F344 rat strains differ on a variety of physiological and behavioral endpoints, including reactivity to drugs of abuse. Although they differ in drug reactivity, such assessments are generally limited to morphine and cocaine. To determine if these differences generalize to other drugs, the present study examined these strains for their reactivity to the affective properties of nicotine. For four conditioning cycles given every other day, rats were allowed access to saccharin, injected with nicotine (0.1, 0.4, 0.8 mg/kg) or vehicle and placed in a designated drug paired side of a CPP chamber. On intervening days, rats were given access to water, injected with vehicle and placed on the non-drug paired side. On the aversion test, the F344 strain that received 0.4 and 0.8 mg/kg acquired an aversion to saccharin. At 0.8 mg/kg, F344 rats drank significantly less than LEW rats. Although there were no significant place preferences, there were trends at 0.4 for the LEW strain toward a preference. Differences between these strains in their response to nicotine are consistent with reported differences in nicotine self-administration.