Skip to main content
. 2023 May 23;48(9):1309–1317. doi: 10.1038/s41386-023-01608-1

Fig. 1. D2R upregulation in NAc CINs increases delay discounting.

Fig. 1

A Top, low magnification image of AAV-DIO-D2-EGFP expression in CINs of the NAc (shown within dotted lines; scale = 500 µm). Bottom, higher magnification within the NAc core showing typical CIN morphology and co-localization of AAV-DIO-D2-EGFP and ChAT immunolabeling (a.c., anterior commissure; scale = 30 µm). B Schematic illustration of the delay discounting task. On free choice trials, two lever options are presented, each leading to a small or a large reward. The delay to the large reward is progressively increased across sessions (0–10 s), while the small reward is given with no delay. C In the absence of delays to either reward, EGFP and D2R-overexpressing mice similarly increased preference for the large reward option after 14 training sessions (shown here as blocks of 2 sessions). Delay main effect: F (6, 84) = 2.608, p = 0.0229; virus effect: F (1, 14) = 0.07516, p = 0.7880; virus x delay interaction: F (6, 84) = 1.257, p = 0.2861. D As delays to the large reward were progressively increased, a 2-way RM ANOVA found a significant main effect of delay (F (5, 70) = 43.47, p < 0.0001) as well as a significant virus x delay interaction: F (5, 70) = 6.13, p < 0.0001, * denotes significant interaction. n = 8 mice/group, 5 females, 3 males per group. Data is expressed as the average of the last 2 days at each delay. E, F. D2R upregulation did not alter the median press latency during forced trials (virus effect: F (1, 14) = 0.5845, p = 0.4572; virus x delay interaction: F (5, 70) = 1.131, p = 0.3522) or during free choice trials (virus effect: F (1, 14) = 0.4418, p = 0.5171; virus x delay interaction: F (5, 70) = 0.8204, p = 0.5393). Values expressed as mean of median latencies ± S.E.M. G, H. No significant group changes were observed in either distance traveled in 5-min bins over a 90-min period in an open field using a different cohort of mice (virus effect: F (1, 18) = 0.1850, p = 0.6722; virus x delay interaction: F (17, 306) = 1.087, p = 0.3651), or in mean total distance traveled over 90-min (t (18) = 0.4301, p = 0.6722). EGFP, n = 9 (3 females, 6 males); D2, n = 11 (5 females, 6 males).