Binge Alcohol Consumption and Somatostatin Neuropeptide Dysregulation in the Prefrontal Cortex
Open Access
- Author:
- Kacala, Andrew
- Area of Honors:
- Biology
- Degree:
- Bachelor of Science
- Document Type:
- Thesis
- Thesis Supervisors:
- Nikki Crowley, Thesis Supervisor
Sarah Mary Assmann, Thesis Honors Advisor - Keywords:
- Neurobiology
Alcohol Use Disorder
Somatostatin (SST)
Binge Drinking
Prefrontal Cortex
Pharmacology
Pharmacotherapy - Abstract:
- Substance use including binge drinking is a major problem throughout the world. Over 15 million individuals are struggling with an alcohol use disorder in the United States (Brockway & Crowley, 2020). Despite this, there are currently limited treatment modalities for alcohol use disorder (AUD). One of the principal brain regions of interest concerning substance use disorders is the prefrontal cortex (PFC) due to evidence of dysregulation of various neuronal populations and neuropeptides in this region seen during the transition to addiction (Brockway & Crowley, 2020). Dysregulation of the neuropeptide somatostatin (SST) has been implicated in various neuropsychiatric disorders such as schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and major depressive disorder (Brockway & Crowley, 2020). Previous work from our laboratory suggests that SST neurons themselves are implicated in binge drinking (Dao et al., 2021). However, the specific role of the neuropeptide SST during alcohol abuse is unknown. This project aims to uncover if binge alcohol consumption alters the presence of SST cells as well as the expression of the SST peptide throughout the PFC. It was observed that the infralimbic cortex (IL) had a larger basal level of SST cell density compared to the other PFC subregions (anterior cingulate cortex, ACC; prelimbic, PL). However, there was no difference in SST cell density following binge drinking. There was a significant decrease in SST peptide expression in the IL cortex in males following binge drinking. Further studies must be performed to uncover SST’s role in alcohol use disorder within the PFC to inform future therapeutic technologies targeted at individuals suffering from AUD and substance use disorders.