Oh What FUN We've Had! Reflections on the Past and a Look to the Future.

In 2011 FUN celebrated 20 years of training tomorrow's neuroscientists today. Over the past two decades we've become an international organization of members dedicated to excellence in teaching and research at the undergraduate level. FUN has enacted its mission through our flagship journal JUNE, student travel awards, faculty awards, education workshops, and regional conferences. More recent initiatives include the equipment loan program, department/program consulting service, the honor society Nu Rho Psi, and neuroscience study abroad opportunities. FUN is poised to continue enhancing undergraduate neuroscience education and research over the next 20 years.

Decreased sensitivity to ethanol reward in adolescent mice as measured by conditioned place preference.

BACKGROUND: Many preclinical studies have demonstrated age-related differential sensitivity to various effects of ethanol between adolescent and adult animals. However, published data addressing possible differences in ethanol's motivational effects are sparse, particularly in mice. The present study examined age-related differences in the conditioned rewarding effects of ethanol in DBA/2J mice. METHODS: In the first experiment an unbiased place conditioning procedure was used to determine the rewarding effects of 2 g/kg ethanol in adult and adolescent DBA/2J mice. In a subsequent place conditioning experiment, the effects of 2 and 4 g/kg were assessed in adolescent mice. RESULTS: Adolescents demonstrated a place preference with the high dose of 4 g/kg but not with a more moderate dose of 2 g/kg. In contrast, 2 g/kg was sufficient to produce place preference in adult mice. CONCLUSIONS: Adolescents are less sensitive than adults to the rewarding effects of ethanol but can experience reward with high doses. These results extend the current literature on ethanol's effects in adolescent animals.

New(er) Kids on the Block - Voices of Junior FUN Faculty.

How do good teachers get that way? While practice is certainly important, good ideas are essential. The first goal of the "New(er) Kids on the Block" plenary session at the 2008 PKAL/FUN Workshop was to highlight the notable things junior FUN faculty are doing in the classroom and the lab. Happily, both younger and more seasoned faculty colleagues shared a multitude of pedagogical ideas, many of which are briefly described here. The second goal of the session was to provide a place for junior faculty to ask questions of senior faculty. This broader goal was less directly met, possibly because of time constraints, possibly because of the nature of the group setting. In future workshops, arranging a large session for the exchange of ideas and a smaller session for mentoring type activities might be advisable.

Lack of effect of dopamine receptor blockade on expression of ethanol-induced conditioned place preference in mice.

RATIONALE: Self-administration studies have suggested that dopamine (DA) is important for the reinforcing effects of ethanol. However, ethanol place conditioning studies have less consistently demonstrated a role for DA in conditioned place preference. OBJECTIVES: The purpose of the present study was to determine whether blockade of D(1), D(2) or D(3) DA receptors would impact the expression of the conditioned place preference induced by ethanol in DBA/2J mice. METHODS: Mice underwent an unbiased place conditioning procedure with 2 g/kg ethanol. Prior to the preference test, mice were injected i.p. with SCH23390 (0, 0.015 or 0.03 mg/kg), raclopride (0, 0.3 or 0.6 mg/kg) or U99194A (0, 10 or 20 mg/kg). RESULTS: Ethanol produced a significant conditioned place preference that was not affected by any of the dopamine antagonists tested. Each of the antagonists decreased locomotor activity, though U99194A was minimally effective. CONCLUSIONS: These findings suggest that the conditioned reinforcing effects of ethanol in DBA/2J mice as assessed by place conditioning are mediated by non-dopaminergic mechanisms.