Role of behavioral sensitization animal model in evaluation of drug dependence / 中国药理学通报

ABSTRACT

Drug abuse and addiction are increasingly severe, which is both a serious social problem and an important medical research work. It is very significant to evaluate dependence potential of centrally acting drugs. Several lines of evidence have shown that there is a close relationship between drug sensitization and drug abuse and addiction. More attention has been directed to sensitization of abused drugs. We introduce the establishment of behavioral sensitization animal model, review neurobiological mechanisms underlying development and expression of behavioral sensitization, and further discuss the role of behavioral sensitization animal model in evaluation of drug dependence.