Assessment of ropinirole as a reinforcer in rhesus monkeys

BackgroundRopinirole, a D2/D3/5-HT1A agonist, is used for the treatment of Parkinson's disease and restless leg syndrome, and is currently being evaluated as a treatment for cocaine dependence. However, there is little information available on ropinirole's reinforcing effects.MethodsThe current study tested ropinirole in monkeys (n = 7) trained to self administer cocaine on a fixed-ratio 25 (FR 25) schedule of reinforcement to determine if it would function as a reinforcer. In addition, a behavioral economics approach was used in four monkeys to compare the reinforcing effectiveness of ropinirole to cocaine.ResultsCocaine (0.01–0.3 mg/kg/injection) functioned as a reinforcer in all monkeys under the FR 25 schedule, and ropinirole (0.01–0.1 mg/kg/injection) functioned as a reinforcer in all but one. Furthermore, cocaine was a more effective reinforcer than ropinirole as indexed by demand functions.ConclusionThe current data indicate that ropinirole has reinforcing effects in monkeys, although its effectiveness as a reinforcer is relatively weak.