Repository logo
 

Evidence for a Long-Lasting Compulsive Alcohol Seeking Phenotype in Rats

Accepted version
Peer-reviewed

Type

Article

Change log

Authors

Giuliano, C 
Peña-Oliver, Y 
Goodlett, CR 
Cardinal, RN 
Robbins, TW 

Abstract

Excessive drinking to intoxication is the major behavioral characteristic of those addicted to alcohol but it is not the only one. Indeed, individuals addicted to alcohol also crave alcoholic beverages and spend time and put much effort into compulsively seeking alcohol, before eventually drinking large amounts. Unlike this excessive drinking, for which treatments exist, compulsive alcohol seeking is therefore another key feature of the persistence of alcohol addiction since it leads to relapse and for which there are few effective treatments. Here we provide novel evidence for the existence in rats of an individual vulnerability to switch from controlled to compulsive, punishment-resistant alcohol seeking. Alcohol-preferring rats given access to alcohol under an intermittent 2-bottle choice procedure to establish their alcohol-preferring phenotype were subsequently trained instrumentally to seek and take alcohol on a chained schedule of reinforcement. When stable seeking-taking performance had been established, completion of cycles of seeking responses resulted unpredictably either in punishment (0.45 mA foot-shock) or the opportunity to make a taking response for access to alcohol. Compulsive alcohol seeking, maintained in the face of the risk of punishment, emerged in only a subset of rats with a predisposition to prefer and drink alcohol, and was maintained for almost a year. We show further that a selective and potent μ-opioid receptor antagonist (GSK1521498) reduced both alcohol seeking and alcohol intake in compulsive and non-compulsive rats, indicating its therapeutic potential to promote abstinence and prevent relapse in individuals addicted to alcohol.

Description

Keywords

Alcohol Drinking, Animals, Compulsive Behavior, Drug-Seeking Behavior, Ethanol, Indans, Male, Phenotype, Rats, Receptors, Opioid, mu, Time Factors, Triazoles

Journal Title

Neuropsychopharmacology

Conference Name

Journal ISSN

0893-133X
1740-634X

Volume Title

Publisher

Springer Nature
Sponsorship
Medical Research Council (G0401099)
Medical Research Council (G1002231)
Medical Research Council (G1000183)
Medical Research Council (MR/N02530X/1)
The present study was funded by a Medical Research Council Programme Grant (no. G1002231) and by GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), which has a commercial interest in GSK1521498. The production of the P rats was funded by the R24 Alcohol Research Resource Award grant (R24 AA015512) from NIAAA.