Time-dependent changes in alcohol-seeking behaviour during abstinence

Exposure of alcohol addicts to alcohol-related environmental cues may elicit alcohol-seeking behaviour even after protracted abstinence. The purpose of the present study was to assess time-dependent changes in alcohol-seeking behaviour in rats trained to respond for alcohol. The rats were re-exposed...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:European neuropsychopharmacology 2004-10, Vol.14 (5), p.355-360
Main Authors: Bienkowski, Przemyslaw, Rogowski, Artur, Korkosz, Agnieszka, Mierzejewski, Pawel, Radwanska, Katarzyna, Kaczmarek, Leszek, Bogucka-Bonikowska, Anna, Kostowski, Wojciech
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Abstinence
Alcoholism - psychology
Animals
Appetitive Behavior - drug effects
Appetitive Behavior - physiology
Behavior, Animal
Body Weight - drug effects
Central Nervous System Depressants - pharmacology
Conditioning, Operant - drug effects
Cue-induced reinstatement
Cues
Ethanol - pharmacology
Extinction
Extinction, Psychological - drug effects
Male
Operant alcohol self-administration
Rat
Rats
Rats, Wistar
Reinforcement Schedule
Self Administration - methods
Substance Withdrawal Syndrome - psychology
Time Factors
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Summary:Exposure of alcohol addicts to alcohol-related environmental cues may elicit alcohol-seeking behaviour even after protracted abstinence. The purpose of the present study was to assess time-dependent changes in alcohol-seeking behaviour in rats trained to respond for alcohol. The rats were re-exposed to alcohol-associated stimuli after 1, 28 or 56 days of withdrawal. During the re-exposure session, the rats were first allowed to respond in extinction. Then, reinstatement of alcohol-seeking behaviour was evoked by a complex of discrete alcohol-associated cues (auditory and light cues combined with taste and smell of alcohol). Extinction behaviour depended on abstinence duration with maximal responding after 28-day abstinence. Reinstatement of alcohol-seeking behaviour evoked by the discrete cues was highest after 56-day abstinence. No correlations were found between individual alcohol intakes, extinction behaviour and cue-induced reinstatement. These results suggest that: (i) alcohol-seeking behaviour may become more intense after long-term imposed abstinence; (ii) alcohol self-administration, extinction behaviour, and reinstatement of alcohol-seeking behaviour may be regulated by separate neural mechanisms.
ISSN:0924-977X
1873-7862
DOI:10.1016/j.euroneuro.2003.10.005