Date of Award
Summer 2024
Document Type
Open Access Dissertation
Department
Psychology
First Advisor
Rosemarie Booze
Abstract
People living with HIV begin to experience gastrointestinal disturbances as early as 6 months after initial infection. Regardless of adherence to combination antiretroviral therapy (cART), the gut microbiome of people living with HIV maintains a state of dysbiosis throughout the rest of their lives, providing potential for a novel target for improving the lives of those living with HIV. The present study investigated the impact EcoHIV and cocaine have on the gut microbiome of F344/N rats. Fecal samples were collected from 20 female and 20 male animals at baseline, following self-administration of cocaine, and following inoculation with EcoHIV or Saline. Results indicated that cocaine, but not EcoHIV significantly alter the alpha and beta diversity of the gut microbiome. Specific taxonomic alterations were present following cocaine use but not EcoHIV inoculation. The present study findings suggest that EcoHIV inoculation may not significantly alter the gut microbiome of F344/N animals, leading us to believe that EcoHIV infected animals are not a reliable method to study the gut-brain-microbiota axis in the context of HIV.
Rights
© 2024, Mason T. Rodriguez
Recommended Citation
Rodriguez, M. T.(2024). Therapeutic Potentials of the Gut-Brain-Microbiota Axis for Prevention and Treatment of Motivational Deficits in EcoHIV Infected Rats. (Doctoral dissertation). Retrieved from https://scholarcommons.sc.edu/etd/7962