Effects of concurrent access to a single concentration or multiple concentrations of ethanol on the intake of ethanol by male and female periadolescent alcohol-preferring (P) rats.

The objectives of this study were to assess the effects of access to different concentrations of ethanol and sex of the animal on ethanol consumption during periadolescence [postnatal days (PNDs) 30-60] in alcohol-preferring (P) rats. On PND 28, female and male P pups were single housed in hanging stainless steel cages with ad libitum access to water and food. Beginning on PND 30, the rats were also given access to either a single concentration [15% volume/volume (vol.

Alcohol stimulates the release of dopamine in the ventral pallidum but not in the globus pallidus: a dual-probe microdialysis study.

The mesoaccumbens dopamine system has been hypothesized to be a common neural substrate mediating the actions of various drugs of abuse, including ethanol. However, the involvement of the mesopallidal dopamine system has received very little attention. The present study examined the effects of intraperitoneal (IP) ethanol administration on the extracellular levels of dopamine in the ventral pallidum (VP) and globus pallidus (GP) of Wistar rats.

Effects of serotonin-3 receptor antagonists on the intracranial self-administration of ethanol within the ventral tegmental area of Wistar rats.

Rationale: Previous work from our laboratory indicated that Wistar rats will self-administer ethanol (EtOH) directly into the posterior ventral tegmental area (VTA) and that 5-HT(3) antagonists will inhibit EtOH-stimulated somatodendritic release of dopamine within the VTA.

Objectives: The objective of this study was to use the intracranial self-administration procedure to determine the involvement of 5-HT(3)receptors in mediating the reinforcing effects of EtOH within the VTA, and to increase our understanding of central nervous system mechanisms involved in the rewarding effects of EtOH.

Methods: Adult female Wistar rats were stereotaxically implanted with guide cannulae aimed at the posterior VTA.

Cocaine is self-administered into the shell but not the core of the nucleus accumbens of Wistar rats.

The rewarding properties of cocaine have been postulated to be regulated, in part, by the mesolimbic dopamine system. However, the possibility that the rewarding properties of cocaine are mediated by direct activation of this system has yielded contradictory findings. The intracranial self-administration technique is used to identify specific brain regions involved in the initiation of response-contingent behaviors for the delivery of a reinforcer.

Effects of ethanol exposure on subsequent acquisition and extinction of ethanol self-administration and expression of alcohol-seeking behavior in adult alcohol-preferring (P) rats: II. Adult exposure.

Background: In a preceding study, we reported that ethanol (EtOH) consumption during periadolescence in alcohol-preferring (P) rats produced significant effects on the acquisition, extinction, Pavlovian spontaneous recovery (PSR), and reacquisition of operant self-administration of EtOH. The objective of the present study was to determine if EtOH consumption during adulthood produced similar effects on subsequent operant behaviors.

Methods: Adult female P rats (>135 days of age) were given 24 hr free-choice access to 15% EtOH for 30 days or were similarly housed and received water only.