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The lateral septum (LS) is a limbic nucleus interconnected with several brain areas involved in the regulation of mood and reward. Vasopressin (AVP) is a neuropeptide that has been related to the effects of drugs of abuse, but its role in the addictive process is poorly understood. LS expresses a high density of AVP 1A receptors (V1A ). The aim of this work was to examine whether the modulation of LS AVP system affects the behavioral and neurochemical responses to amphetamine (AMPH) in male rats. Our results show that AMPH-induced conditioned place preference (CPP) produces a decrease in LS AVP content. Besides, we demonstrate that the microinjection of AVP in the LS impairs the expression of AMPH-induced CPP and that this effect is mediated by the activation of the V1A receptor in the LS. AVP microinjection in the LS elicited a decrease in neuronal activity in the nucleus accumbens (NAc) in animals subjected to AMPH conditioning. Finally, AVP microinjection in the LS decreased dopamine (DA) release in the NAc. Overall, our data demonstrate that intra-LS AVP diminishes the expression of AMPH conditioning behavior while decreasing neuronal activity and DA release in the NAc. Presumably, the effects of AVP in the LS produce an inhibition of GABAergic projections to the VTA, increasing local inhibitory tone in this nucleus, which in turn reduces the activity of DA projections to NAc. Thus, these results contribute to the knowledge about the role of AVP in LS in regulating the reward circuit and addictive like behaviors.

The lateral septum (LS), a brain structure implicated in addictive behaviours, regulates the activation of dopaminergic neurones in the ventral tegmental area. Vasopressinergic projections from the extended amygdala to the LS, which are sexually dimorphic, could be responsible for the vulnerability to addiction in a sex-dependent manner. The present study aimed to investigate the modulatory effects of amphetamine (AMPH) on the expression of vasopressin (AVP) in the vasopressinergic extra-hypothalamic system in sensitised male and female rats. Adult male and female Sprague-Dawley rats underwent an AMPH-locomotor sensitisation protocol. Acute AMPH increased AVP mRNA expression in the medial amygdala (MeA), whereas AMPH-induced sensitisation increased AVP mRNA expression in the bed nucleus of the stria terminalis (BNST) only in females. Interestingly, the increase in AVP expression in BNST was higher in oestrus females compared to dioestrus females and acute AMPH resulted in a decrease in AVP levels in the LS, only in males. Thus, there are complex and region-specific interactions between AMPH and the extra-hypothalamic vasopressinergic system in the brain, underlying possible alterations in different behaviours caused by acute and chronic AMPH exposure.

Introducción: La madre de un niño que ha sufrido abuso sexual tiene un rol complejo tanto en el fenómeno del abuso del hijo como en la reparación psicológica posterior. Con el propósito de establecer la relación entre experiencias de abuso sexual infantil a través de las generaciones, se exploraron aspectos de las historias de madres que pueden estar asociados a la ocurrencia de abuso sexual de los hijos. Método: Se administró una encuesta a dos grupos de madres: uno cuyos hijos fueron abusados y otro con hijos no abusados. Resultados: Las madres de niños abusados sexualmente presentan más reportes de abuso sexual en la infancia, en comparación con el otro grupo. Conclusiones: Existe relación entre el abuso sexual de un hijo y el relato materno de experiencias abusivas en la infancia. Se requiere mayor investigación para explorar factores involucrados en esta relación y si éstos se asocian a capacidades parentales Introduction: Mothers of sexually abused children have a complex role both in the event of abuse and in its psychological treatment. Objective: to establish a relationship between childhood sexual abuse across the generations, we explored the key issues in the mother's history and related it to the children. Method: A questionnaire was answered by two groups of mothers; those with sexually abused children and those not. The study describes the characteristics of abuse in both mother and child. Results: The mothers of sexually abused children had suffered abuse as children in comparison with mothers of non abused children. Conclusions: There exists a relation between mothers reportedly sexually abused during childhood and the abuse of their child. This need further investigation to explore factors involved in this relationship and the possible association with parental capacities