Abstract
Increased distractibility is associated with both Alzheimer's disease and attention deficit disorder. The present study examined the effects of (-)-nicotine and the novel central nicotinic receptor (nAChR) agonists ABT-418 [(S)-3-methyl-2-pyrrolidinyl)isoxazole] and ABT-089 [2-metoyl-3-(2-(S)-pyrrolindinylmethoxy)-pyridine dihydrochloride] on the delayed recall accuracy of adult monkeys exposed to distracting stimuli. Unpredictable exposure to a random visual array produced marked decrements in recall accuracy on trials with the shortest delay intervals, reducing the accuracy on these trials by 23.4%. Intramuscular (IM) administration of (-)-nicotine, in doses of 5.4-43.3 nmol/kg, attenuated the effect of the distractor, but did not completely prevent it. Both ABT-418 (2.0-16.2 nmol/kg, IM) and ABT-089 (16.4-32.8 nmol/kg, IM) prevented distractibility, producing increases of 7.5-25.0% in accuracy on trials disrupted by distractor exposure. Further, both compounds also improved accuracy on trials during which distractors were not presented, an effect which was not observed after (-)-nicotine administration. Nicotinic-mediated side effects were not observed following administration of any compound. Thus, nAChR stimulation reduces distractibility in adult monkeys and may, therefore, represent a target for the pharmacologic treatment of disorders associated with susceptibility to distraction. ABT-418 and ABT-089 appear to be particularly useful in this regard, a likely result of their selective agonist activity at nAChRs expressed in the brain.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 50-58 |
Number of pages | 9 |
Journal | Psychopharmacology |
Volume | 136 |
Issue number | 1 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - 1998 |
Keywords
- (-)-Nicotine
- ABT-089
- ABT-418
- Cognition
- Delay matching
- Distractibility
- Monkey
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Pharmacology