484 MAPping impulsivity: Cortical architecture as a biosignature for relapse vulnerability in substance use disorders

Abstract

Objectives/Goals: One in 14 individuals have a substance use disorder (SUD). We suggest that a trait of poor impulse control, or high impulsivity, may predict relapse risk. We explore how changes in brain structure linked to decision-making and reward might drive high impulsivity, helping create a “biosignature” to identify those most at risk and guide treatment choices. Methods/Study Population: Male rats were phenotyped as high impulsive (HI) or low impulsive (LI) based on premature responses on the one-choice serial reaction time (1-CSRT) task. Rats then received an intracranial infusion of a retrograde virus (AAVr2) in the nucleus accumbens (NAc) to trace corticoaccumbens neurons back to the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC). After impulsivity phenotyping (ITI8), another cohort of animals performed cocaine self-administration followed by 30 days of abstinence. Cue reactivity, a measure of relapse-like behaviors, was performed on abstinence day 30. Analyses of microtubule-associated protein 2 (MAP2), a cytoskeletal marker of dendrites, spines, and somas was performed with western blotting and fluorescent images of brain slices after phenotyping and cocaine abstinence. Results/Anticipated Results: HI rats made greater premature responses, a marker of impulsive action vs. LI rats at baseline (p Discussion/Significance of Impact: Poor inherent impulse control and drug cues heighten relapse risk. We found high impulsivity linked to brain structure differences and lower protein markers of synaptic (units supporting signaling) strengthening. Future investigations into brain-behavior links with impulsivity may further identify a SUD relapse vulnerability biosignature.