Effects of stress and ebiratide (Hoe-427) on free-choice ethanol consumption: comparison of Lewis and Sprague-Dawley rats.

The effects of immobilization stress, isolation stress and administration of Hoe-427 on free-choice consumption of ethanol by Lewis and Sprague-Dawley rats were studied. The animals were offered two-bottle choice consumption of 0.2% saccharin and 10% ethanol/0.2% saccharin, then exposed to 4 days of immobilization stress or isolation stress on an irregular, unpredictable schedule or 4 days of i.p. doses of Hoe-427 at 1800 hours. Both stresses resulted in significant decreases in ethanol consumption during the stress period. Hoe-427 produced a significant decrease in ethanol consumption, in a dose-dependent manner. Saccharin consumption was not significantly affected by any of the treatments. The ability to correlate the Lewis and Sprague-Dawley rat response further aids in supporting the role of the adrenocorticotropic peptide in the development of ethanol consumption.