Repeated toluene exposure increases c-Fos in catecholaminergic cells of the nucleus accumbens shell.

Toluene is a frequently abused solvent. Previous studies have suggested that toluene acts like other drugs of abuse, specifically on the dopaminergic system in the nucleus accumbens (NAc) and ventral tegmental area (VTA) of the mesolimbic pathway. Although changes in dopamine (DA) levels and c-Fos have been observed in both acute and repeated exposure paradigms, the extent to which c-Fos is localized to catecholaminergic cells is unknown. The present study tested the effects of repeated toluene exposure (1000-4000ppm) on locomotor activity and cells containing c-Fos, tyrosine hydroxylase (TH), or both in the core and shell of the NAc, as well as the anterior and posterior VTA. We focused our study on adolescents, since adolescence is a time of great neural change and a time when individuals tend to be more susceptible to drug abuse. In early tests, toluene dose-dependently increased locomotor activity. Repeated exposure to the highest concentration of toluene resulted in sensitization to toluene's effects on locomotor activity. Although the number of cells immunopositive for c-Fos or TH did not significantly differ across groups, cells immunopositive for TH+c-Fos were higher in the NAc shell of animals exposed to 4000ppm than in animals exposed to air (control) or 1000ppm. Taken together, these findings demonstrate that repeated high dose toluene exposure increases locomotor activity as well as activation of catecholaminergic cells in the shell of the NAc.
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