Individual and sex differences in frontloading behavior and approach- avoidance conflict preference predict addiction-like ethanol seeking in rats.

ABSTRACT: Recent research has identified sex-dependent links between risk taking behaviors, approach-avoidance bias and alcohol intake. However, preclinical studies have typically assessed alcohol drinking using a singular dimension of intake (i.e. drinking level), failing to capture the multidimensional pattern of aberrant alcohol-seeking observed in alcohol use disorder. In this study, we sought to further explore individual and sex differences in the relationship between approach-avoidance bias, frontloading (bingeing and onset skew) and multiple addiction-like indices of ethanol seeking that included motivation for ethanol, persistence despite its absence (extinction), and ethanol-taking in the face of mild footshock. We found that female rats displayed more addiction-like phenotypes than males

SUBMITTER: McNamara TA 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11757739 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature