Binge ethanol intoxication heightens subsequent ethanol intake in adolescent, but not adult, rats. Issue 3 (22nd January 2013)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Fabio, María Carolina; Nizhnikov, Michael E.; Spear, Norman E.; Pautassi, Ricardo Marcos
• Is Part Of: Developmental psychobiology. Volume 56:Issue 3(2014)
• Page Start: 574
• Page End: 583
• Publication Date: 2013-01-22
• Subjects: Psychobiology -- Periodicals; 155
• DOI: 10.1002/dev.21101
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0012-1630

Abstract

<abstract abstract-type="main" xml:lang="en"> <title>Abstract</title> <sec id="dev21101-sec-0001" sec-type="section"> <p>A question still to be answered is whether ethanol initiation has a greater effect on ethanol consumption if it occurs during adolescence than in adulthood. This study assessed the effect of ethanol initiation during adolescence or adulthood on voluntary ethanol consumption when animals were still within the same age range. Adolescent or adult rats were given 5, 2, or 0 ethanol exposures. The animals were tested for ethanol consumption through two‐bottle choice tests, before undergoing a 1‐week deprivation. A two‐bottle assessment was conducted after the deprivation. Adolescents, but not adults, given two ethanol administrations during initiation exhibited significantly higher ethanol intake during the pre‐deprivation period. These adolescents also exhibited a threefold increase in ethanol intake after 7 days of drug withdrawal, when compared with controls. These findings suggest that very brief experience with binge ethanol intoxication in adolescence, but not in adulthood, impacts later predisposition to drink. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. © 2013 <italic>Wiley Periodicals, Inc</italic>. Dev Psychobiol 56: 574–583, 2014.</p> </sec> </abstract>