Dopamine Release in an Animal Model of Binge Eating (2010)

Undergraduate: Vahid Sanii

Faculty Advisor: Donita Robinson
Department: Chemistry

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Binge Eating is a maladaptive behavior that has manifested itself within society, affecting many people. This behavior can be further understood by examining the neurobiological processes that propagate such habits and observing the eating that occurs. In this investigation, two factors were explored in order to study binge eating: food-associated cues and food-restriction. An animal model with palatable foods used as the binge was given to Long-Evans rats in order to find an association with dopamine release. Dopamine transients were measured in the nucleus accumbens by using fast-scan cyclic voltammetry after the rats had undergone a series of eight binge cycles. As a result it was theorized that dopamine transients would be expressed in the nucleus accumbens at the presentation of the cue and that such a presentation would be more pronounced in food deprived rats. The animals were also examined behaviorally in order to find corresponding binge eating habits expressed and the divergence in behavior due to food restriction.