Paternal alcohol exposure reduces acquisition of operant alcohol self-administration and affects Bdnf DNA methylation in male and female offspring.

Familial transmission of alcohol use disorder reflects genetic and environmental factors. Paternal alcohol exposure may affect rodent offspring via epigenetic modifications transmitted through the male germ line. While such exposure alters alcohol sensitivity in mouse offspring, no studies examined if it impacts the development of operant alcohol self-administration in rats.

Equal response rates maintained by concurrent drug and nondrug reinforcers: a design for treatment evaluation.

During daily 3-h sessions, four rhesus monkeys had concurrent access to 16% alcohol (w/v) and saccharin. A response occurred when a monkey made mouth contact with the metal spout and thereby completed a drinkometer circuit. The liquids were available under concurrent nonindependent fixed-ratio 32 schedules.

Concurrent nonindependent fixed-ratio schedules of alcohol self-administration: Effects of schedule size on choice.

Choice behavior was studied under concurrent nonindependent fixed-ratio fixed-ratio (nFR) schedules of reinforcement, as these schedules result in frequent changeover responses. With these schedules, responses on either operandum count toward the completion of the ratio requirements of both schedules. Five monkeys were subjects, and two pairs of liquid reinforcers were concurrently available: 16% (w/v) and 0% ethanol or 16% and 8% ethanol.

Drug self-administration studies: a novel reinforcement schedule enhances choice.

Relative reinforcing effects of different ethanol and different cocaine doses were studied under concurrent independent fixed-ratio (FR) schedules and concurrent nonindependent FR schedules with rhesus monkeys. Nonindependent FR schedules differed from independent FR schedules in that responses on either side counted towards the FR requirements of two concurrently presented choices. Thus, responses on the right operandum counted toward completion of both right and left FR schedules and, symmetrically, responses on the left did the same.

Predicting extinction and reinstatement of alcohol and sucrose self-administration in outbred rats.

Preventing relapse to drinking or escalation to excessive drinking could be aided by identifying factors that predict these behaviors. Animal models, particularly those that utilize operant self-administration techniques, can be useful. In a prior operant study, we noted a good deal of variability in behaviors during training and test sessions.

Methadone and nicotine self-administration in humans: a behavioral economic analysis.

Rationale: Prior research has revealed inconsistencies in the behavioral relations between nicotine and opiates among methadone-maintained patients.

Objectives: The current study examined whether the drug reinforcers cigarette puffs and methadone were economic complements or substitutes.

Methods: Five methadone-maintained, nicotine-dependent participants were trained to self-administer methadone, cigarette puffs, or concurrently available methadone and puffs.

Direct relation between etonitazene dose and response rate: responding under a single FI per session.

Response-contingent injections of etonitazene (ETZ) have been shown to reinforce rats' lever pressing behavior. The objective of the present study was to determine the relation between response rate and ETZ dose when ETZ was administered subcutaneously once per session by the experimenter contingent upon completion of a 10-min fixed-interval (FI) schedule. When injections of the saline vehicle replaced drug injections, response rates dropped to low levels; rates subsequently increased above saline levels when drug injections were reintroduced, demonstrating that ETZ was serving as a reinforcer.

Relation between choice of ethanol concentration and response rates under progressive- and fixed-ratio schedules: studies with rhesus monkeys.

Rationale: A fundamental problem in the study of drugs as reinforcers is the evaluation of a drug's relative reinforcing effects and changes in such effects. Relative reinforcing effects can be measured by determining the preference for one drug dose relative to another drug dose. However, in IV drug self-administration studies technical limitations make direct comparisons between drug doses difficult.

Relative reinforcing effects of different benzodiazepine doses for rhesus monkeys.

The relative reinforcing effects of different doses of benzodiazepines were determined by giving rhesus monkeys concurrent access to different diazepam and midazolam concentrations. For each monkey a dose response function was obtained using three drug concentrations: low (L), intermediate (I), and high (H). The benzodiazepine and the water vehicle were concurrently available under independent fixed-ratio (FR) schedules.

Relative reinforcing effects of different oral ethanol doses in rhesus monkeys.

The relative reinforcing effects of different doses of orally delivered ethanol were evaluated. Mouth-contact responding by rhesus monkeys was measured under concurrent fixed-ratio fixed-ratio schedules of liquid delivery (0.67 ml/delivery) from each of two spouts during daily 3-hr sessions.