Richard A. Meisch, M.D., Ph.D. 1970, University of Minnesota The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston Medical School Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences Contact Information

Research Interests:

• Drugs as reinforcers
• Drug self-administration
• Magnitude of reinforcement
• Establishment of drugs as reinforcers
• Genetics of drug reinforcement
• Neuropharmacology of drug reinforcement
• Drug combinations (polydrug abuse)
• Behavioral economics of drug reinforced behavior
• Species generality (mouse, rat, monkey, human)

My laboratory research concerns the drug reinforced behavior of rhesus monkeys and rodents where abused drugs function as rewards or reinforcers. In contrast to most other laboratories we use the oral route and not the intravenous route. Thus, we can conduct studies that are not feasible in other laboratories. How to establish drugs as orally delivered reinforcers is one research topic. Another has been the use of preference (choice) and persistence measures of relative reinforcing effects. For example, we have examined what drug doses are preferred to other drug doses, and we have developed new procedures for making such measures. A related topic is the measurement of relative reinforcing effects by determining the relative persistence of behavior across increase in schedule size. A distinguishing feature of the laboratory is an interest in fundamental principles governing all reinforced behavior and how these principles can be correctly applied to the analysis of drug reinforced behavior. The reinforcing effect of food restriction increase drug reinforcement is another research focus. The genetics and neuropharmacology of drug reinforcement are additional areas of interest. We are using the principles of behavioral economics to analyze drug taking behavior and to relate economic measures to other fundamental behavioral measures. A final area of interest is the generality of findings across species including humans.

Students in my laboratory have a choice among a number of topics. Students work with rhesus monkeys and rats and learn how to conduct drug self-administration studies. There are many procedures for studying drug reinforced behavior and students have the opportunity to learn these procedures which include how to establish drugs as reinforcers and how to analyze drug reinforced behavior. Design of studies and analysis of data are emphasized. Students also learn the fundamentals of operant conditioning and behavioral pharmacology plus develop knowledge of drug abuse.

Publications

Program Affiliation:

Program in Neuroscience