Drinking alcohol has sex-dependent effects on pair bond formation in prairie voles

Alcohol use and abuse profoundly influences a variety of behaviors, including social interactions. In some cases, it erodes social relationships; in others, it facilitates sociality. Here, we show that voluntary alcohol consumption can inhibit male partner preference (PP) formation (a laboratory pro...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences - PNAS 2014-04, Vol.111 (16), p.6052-6057
Main Authors: Anacker, Allison M. J., Ahern, Todd H., Hostetler, Caroline M., Dufour, Brett D., Smith, Monique L., Cocking, Davelle L., Li, Ju, Young, Larry J., Loftis, Jennifer M., Ryabinin, Andrey E.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Aggression
Alcohol drinking
Alcohol Drinking - physiopathology
Alcohol use
Alcohols
Animals
Arvicolinae - physiology
Attachment behavior
Behavioral neuroscience
Behavioral sciences
Biological Sciences
Cohabitation
Female
Female animals
Male
Mating behavior
Mating Preference, Animal - physiology
Neurochemistry
Neuropeptides
Neuropeptides - metabolism
Pair Bond
Personal relationships
Prairies
Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-fos - metabolism
Sex Characteristics
Social interaction
Social Sciences
Voles
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Summary:Alcohol use and abuse profoundly influences a variety of behaviors, including social interactions. In some cases, it erodes social relationships; in others, it facilitates sociality. Here, we show that voluntary alcohol consumption can inhibit male partner preference (PP) formation (a laboratory proxy for pair bonding) in socially monogamous prairie voles (Microtus ochrogaster). Conversely, female PP is not inhibited, and may be facilitated by alcohol. Behavior and neurochemical analysis suggests that the effects of alcohol on social bonding are mediated by neural mechanisms regulating pair bond formation and not alcohol’s effects on mating, locomotor, or aggressive behaviors. Several neuropeptide systems involved in the regulation of social behavior (especially neuropeptide Y and corticotropin-releasing factor) are modulated by alcohol drinking during cohabitation. These findings provide the first evidence to our knowledge that alcohol has a direct impact on the neural systems involved in social bonding in a sex-specific manner, providing an opportunity to explore the mechanisms by which alcohol affects social relationships.
ISSN:0027-8424
1091-6490
DOI:10.1073/pnas.1320879111