Effect of Physical and Emotional Stress on Nicotine Consumption in Male Mice

This experiment was designed to examine the impact of chronic stress exposure on nicotine consumption. Adolescent (postnatal days, PD 38-75) male mice underwent 10 days of social defeat, were treated with one month (long-term) of forced nicotine consumption (160 mg/l), and their reactivity to various behavioral paradigms (social interaction test (SIT), elevated plus maze (EPM), and forced swim test (FST)) was assessed. Findings indicate that chronic nicotine exposure following social defeat may effectively buffer against some anxiety- and depression-like symptoms later in life.