Cocaine is the most frequently reported illicit drug used by patients presenting to emergency rooms in the U.S.. The clinical course of these patients is often complicated by trauma, the need for emergent surgical intervention, and drug toxicity. Thus, anesthesiologists have a critical and increasing role in the acute care of these patients. Cocaine intoxication produces recurrent seizure activity that is often resistant to standard anticonvulsant therapy and can ultimately lead to permanent neurological damage and even death. This central nervous system (CNS) excitotoxicity may be due to the drug's inhibition of sodium conductance as well as to the inhibition of monoamine reuptake, resulting in increased extracellular amino acid and monoaminergic neurotransmitter concentrations in specific CNS pathways. Moreover, it has been well established that the susceptibility to this CNS excitotoxicity is often amplified with chronic use of the drug. The basis for this increased susceptibility may be related to alterations in extracellular CNS monoaminergic and amino acid neurotransmitter release following repeated exposure to the drug. There is a paucity of scientific information regarding the effect of anesthetic drugs on the CNS excitotoxicity of cocaine. Consequently, microdialysis and electroencephalographic techniques will be employed in a chronically instrumented rat model, following acute and chronic cocaine exposure, in order to determine the effect of anesthetic drugs (fentanyl and dexmedetomidine) on: 1) cocaine-induced epileptiform activity and 2) extracellular dopaminergic and glutamatergic neurotransmitter concentrations in the nucleus accumbens (NAC) of the brain, an area linked to the behavioral and excitatory effects of cocaine. We hypothesize that anesthetic agents modify the CNS excitatory effects of cocaine by altering extracellular dopaminergic and glutamatergic neurotransmitter concentrations in the NAC. This information will provide a fundamental understanding of the interaction between commonly used anesthetic drugs and cocaine in terms of modification of central neurotransmitter concentrations and CNS excitotoxicity. This information is essential if we are to better understand the anesthetic management of cocaine-abusing patients and may also be relevant to the many patients taking psychiatric medications, drugs that also alter CNS dopaminergic and glutamatergic activity. This award will allow me to obtain the investigational skills and knowledge base that will enable me to develop into a clinician-scientist and independent investigator in anesthesiology and neuroscience research.

Agency
National Institute of Health (NIH)
Institute
National Institute of General Medical Sciences (NIGMS)
Type
Clinical Investigator Award (CIA) (K08)
Project #
5K08GM000681-04
Application #
6525380
Study Section
Surgery, Anesthesiology and Trauma Study Section (SAT)
Program Officer
Cole, Alison E
Project Start
1999-09-01
Project End
2004-08-31
Budget Start
2002-09-01
Budget End
2003-08-31
Support Year
4
Fiscal Year
2002
Total Cost
$125,604
Indirect Cost
Name
Columbia University (N.Y.)
Department
Anesthesiology
Type
Schools of Medicine
DUNS #
167204994
City
New York
State
NY
Country
United States
Zip Code
10032
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Whittington, Robert A; Bretteville, Alexis; Virág, László et al. (2013) Anesthesia-induced hypothermia mediates decreased ARC gene and protein expression through ERK/MAPK inactivation. Sci Rep 3:1388
Whittington, Robert A; Virag, Laszlo (2006) Dexmedetomidine-induced decreases in accumbal dopamine in the rat are partly mediated via the locus coeruleus. Anesth Analg 102:448-55
Whittington, Robert A; Virag, Laszlo (2006) Isoflurane decreases extracellular serotonin in the mouse hippocampus. Anesth Analg 103:92-8, table of contents
Virag, Laszlo; Whittington, Robert A (2002) Highly sensitive chromatographic assay for dopamine determination during in vivo cerebral microdialysis in the rat. J Chromatogr B Analyt Technol Biomed Life Sci 772:267-72
Whittington, Robert A; Virag, Laszlo; Vulliemoz, Yvonne et al. (2002) Dexmedetomidine increases the cocaine seizure threshold in rats. Anesthesiology 97:693-700
Whittington, R A; Virag, L; Morishima, H O et al. (2001) Dexmedetomidine decreases extracellular dopamine concentrations in the rat nucleus accumbens. Brain Res 919:132-8