|
Ph.D., University of Pittsburgh
Research Interests
Nicotine, like other drugs of abuse, is reinforcing; both animals and humans will learn to perform a behavior when nicotine is delivered contingent on that behavior. While this effect of nicotine is important and has been a focus of my research for many years, it is clear that people smoke for reasons that extend beyond nicotine reinforcement. Recently, we have focused on three additional factors influencing smoking. The first factor is the set of stimuli associated with nicotine/smoking (e.g., taste of the cigarette). These stimuli are robust, consistent, and perfectly predictive of nicotine administration. Consequently, the sensorimotor characteristics of cigarette smoking become a major determinant of why people smoke and must be integrated into any complete theory of tobacco use. The second factor that must be considered is the effect of nicotine on other reinforcers in the environment. Nicotine directly (i.e., non-associatively) enhances the value of concurrently available reinforcers and nicotine withdrawal is associated with anhedonia. These processes may be critical determinants of cigarette use. The third factor is nicotine dependence. Like other drugs of abuse, repeated tobacco use changes the smoker, leading to a constellation of symptoms. These changes are not simply a reflection of the reinforcing effects of nicotine, but instead include additional factors that drive smoking behavior (e.g., impulsivity, insensitivity to alternative reinforcement). For each of these issues, my approach has been to utilize a wide range of methods (e.g., animal models of self-administration, behavioral and functional neuroimaging assessments in humans, and analyses of epidemiological datasets), capitalizing on the strengths of each.
Recent Publications
- Palmatier, M.I., Levin, M.E., Mays, K.L., Donny, E.C., Caggiula, A.R., Sved, A.F. (2009). Bupropion and nicotine enhance responding for nondrug reinforcers via dissociable pharmacological mechanisms in rats. Psychopharmacology 207:381-90.
- Donny, E.C., Jones, M. (2009). Prolonged exposure to denicotinized cigarettes with or without transdermal nicotine. Drug and Alcohol Dependence 104: 23-33. PMCID 2726800
- Sweitzer, M.M., Donny, E.C., Dierker, L.C., Flory, J.D., Manuck, S.B. (2008). Delay discounting and smoking: Association with the Fagerstrom Test for Nicotine Dependence but not cigarettes smoked per day. Nicotine and Tobacco Research 10(10):1571-5.
- Donny, E.C., Dierker, L.C. (2007). The absence of DSM-IV nicotine dependence in moderate-to-heavy daily smokers. Drug and Alcohol Dependence 89: 93-6. PMCID 1924493.
- Palmatier M.I., Liu X., Matteson G.L., Donny E.C., Caggiula A.R., Sved A.F. (2007). Conditioned reinforcement in rats established with self-administered nicotine and enhanced by noncontingent nicotine. Psychopharmacology 195:235-43. PMCID 2811394.
- Donny, E.C., Houtsmuller, E., Stitzer, M.L. (2007). Smoking in the absence of nicotine: behavioral, subjective and physiological effects over eleven days. Addiction 102(2):324-34.
|
