FAAH inhibitor, URB-597, promotes extinction and CB1 antagonist, SR141716, inhibits extinction of conditioned aversion produced by naloxone-precipitated morphine withdrawal, but not extinction of conditioned preference produced by morphine in rats

Converging evidence suggests that the endogenous cannabinoid (eCB) system is involved in extinction of learned behaviours. Using operant and classical conditioning procedures, the potential of the fatty acid amide (FAAH) inhibitor, URB-597, and the CB1 antagonist/inverse agonist, SR141716, to promote and inhibit (respectively) extinction of learned responses previously motivated by either rewarding or aversive stimuli was investigated. In the operant conditioning procedure (Expt. 1), rats previously trained to lever press for sucrose reward were administered URB-597 (0.3 mg/kg) or the CB1 antagonist/inverse agonist SR141716 (2.5 mg/kg) prior to each of three extinction trials. In the conditioned floor preference procedure (Expts 2a–d), rats trained to associate morphine with one of two distinctive floors were administered one of several doses of the CB1 antagonist/inverse agonist, AM-251 (Expt 2a) or URB-597 (Expt 2b and 2d) prior to each extinction/test trial wherein a choice of both floors was presented and prior to forced exposure to each floor (Expt 2c). In the conditioned floor aversion procedure (Expt. 3), rats trained to associate a naloxone-precipitated morphine withdrawal with a floor cue were administered URB-597 or SR141716 prior to each of 24 extinction/testing trials. URB-597 did not promote and SR141716 did not reduce extinction rates for sucrose reward-induced operant responding (Expt. 1) or morphine-induced conditioned floor preference (Expts. 2a–d). In contrast, URB-597 facilitated, whereas SR141716 impaired, extinction of the conditioned floor aversion (Expt. 3). These data support previous reports that the eCB system selectively facilitates extinction of aversive memories. URB-597 may prove useful in targeting extinction of aversively motivated behaviours.