Defensive burying and stress gastric erosions in alcohol-preferring AA and alcohol-avoiding ANA rats

The aim of this study was to investigate differences in shock-prod induced defensive burying and vulnerability to stress gastric ulcerations in two lines of rats selectively bred for alcohol-preference (AA) and alcohol-avoidance (ANA). Alcohol-naïve animals from the AA and ANA lines were tested in t...

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Published in:Alcoholism, clinical and experimental research clinical and experimental research, 1998-12, Vol.22 (9), p.2050-2054
Main Authors: SANDBAK, T, MURISON, R, SARVIHARJU, M, HYYTIÄ, P
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Addictive behaviors
Adult and adolescent clinical studies
Alcoholism
Alcoholism - genetics
Alcoholism - pathology
Animals
Arousal - genetics
Biological and medical sciences
Dopamine - physiology
Electroshock
Fear - physiology
Gastric Mucosa - pathology
Male
Medical sciences
Motivation
Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry
Psychopathology. Psychiatry
Rats
Rats, Inbred Strains
Selection, Genetic
Stereotyped Behavior - physiology
Stomach Ulcer - genetics
Stomach Ulcer - pathology
Stress, Psychological - complications
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Summary:The aim of this study was to investigate differences in shock-prod induced defensive burying and vulnerability to stress gastric ulcerations in two lines of rats selectively bred for alcohol-preference (AA) and alcohol-avoidance (ANA). Alcohol-naïve animals from the AA and ANA lines were tested in the shock-prod defensive burying test and (after an interval of approximately 2 months) in a 75 min water-immersion stress ulceration-inducing procedure. The AA rats showed longer latencies (327.5 s) for burying after shock-prod compared with the ANA animals (128.0 s). Furthermore, the ANA rats developed more stomach ulcerations (12.35 mm) compared with the AA rats (1.30 mm). Animals also differed based on whether they had been tested for defensive burying or not, with the tested animals showing less ulceration development than the control group. We hypothesize that the difference between AA and ANA rats is controlled by some common biochemical mechanism. One likely candidate is the dopaminergic system, which is involved in both the motivational effects of alcohol, as well as anxiety and stomach ulceration. In addition, the alcohol-preferring strain seems to be less fearful and generally may be less sensitive to aversive stimuli, be it shock prod, the aversive properties of alcohol, or water immersion stress.
ISSN:0145-6008
1530-0277
DOI:10.1097/00000374-199812000-00022