Gail D. Winger, Ph.D.

Professor/Research

Personal Statement:

For my research interests:
The bulk of my career has been involved in evaluation of the reinforcing effects of drugs of abuse in rhesus monkeys. Using behavioral economic measures, my lab was able to compare the reinforcing effectiveness of various abused drugs, evaluate the effects of opioid physiological dependence and tolerance on the reinforcing effectiveness of opioid drugs, and measure individual differences among animals in their responses to the reinforcing effects of abused drugs. My current research remains focused on drugs of abuse, particularly measures of opioid withdrawal in rats following administration of opioid antagonists. In addition, we are studying the discriminative stimulus effects of cholinergic agonists and how these are mimicked or modified by other cholinergic drugs.