Microinfusion of the D1 receptor antagonist, SCH23390 into the IL but not the BLA impairs consolidation of extinction of auditory fear conditioning

In auditory fear conditioning, repeated presentation of the tone in the absence of the shock leads to extinction of the acquired fear response. Both the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) and the basolateral amygdala (BLA) are involved in extinction. Here we examined this involvement by antagonizing D1 receptors in both regions, in the rat. We microinfused the D1 receptor antagonist, SCH23390, into the infra-limbic part of the mPFC (IL) or BLA at different time points. SCH23390 mircoinfused into the IL either before extinction acquisition or following short extinction training resulted in impairment of extinction consolidation. Microinfusion of SCH23390 into the BLA, prior to acquisition of extinction caused impairment in acquisition of extinction without affecting extinction consolidation. This is supported by the results showing that microinfusion of SCH23390 into the BLA following a short-training session did not affect consolidation. These results further strengthen the role of mPFC in consolidation of extinction while highlighting the role of the D1 receptors in this process.