PET Imaging and Cocaine Neuropharmacology in Monkeys

NIH / National Institute on Drug Abuse R01 DA10344

Objective: To use positron emission tomography (PET) imaging techniques as a novel approach to investigate cocaine-induced functional changes in CNS activity in rhesus monkeys.

Personnel: Leonard L. Howell (PI), William E. Fantegrossi, Jessica McClung, Kevin Murnane, Tango M. Howard, and Juliet Brown

Effects of Self-Administered MDMA on Brain and Behavior in Rhesus Monkeys

NIH / National Institute on Drug Abuse R21 DA020645

Objective: To characterize the persistent effects of self-administered MDMA on behavior and monoamine neurochemistry using in vivo microdialysis, PET imaging, and intravenous drug self-administration techniques in non-human primates.

Personnel: William E. Fantegrossi (PI), Leonard L. Howell, and Jodi Godfrey

Cocaine Use and Monoamine Function in Nonhuman Primates

NIH / National Institute on Drug Abuse R01 DA12514

Objective: To use in vivo microdialysis techniques in conjunction with cocaine self-administration protocols to characterize neurochemical changes during cocaine use in squirrel monkeys.

Personnel: Leonard L. Howell (PI), Heather L. Kimmel, Rayna Bauzo, Dan Manvich, and Mi Zhou

Transitional States in Drug Addiction in Nonhuman Primates

NIH / National Institute on Drug Abuse R01 DA016589

Objective: To utilize i.v. drug self-administration protocols in rhesus monkeys to identify critical behavioral endpoints indicative of transitional states associated with the process of drug addiction.

Personnel: Leonard L. Howell (PI), Porche Kirkland, Carol Nichols, and Lisa Neidert

Conte Project

NIH / National Institute of Mental Health P50 MH058922

Objective: To utilize intravenous drug self-administration protocols in conjunction with in vivo microdialysis and functional positron emission tomography (PET) imaging to investigate the impact of early life stress on sensitivity to the behavioral and neurochemical effects of stimulants in rhesus monkeys.

Personnel: Leonard L. Howell (PI) and Sarah Ewing