The Role of Orexin Signaling in the Ventral Tegmental Area and Central Amygdala in Modulating Binge-Like Ethanol Drinking Behavior.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Recent reports have demonstrated that binge-like ethanol (EtOH) drinking leads to an increase in hypothalamic orexin (OX) signaling and that suppressing this signaling via systemic administration of an orexin receptor (OXR) antagonist blocks this behavior; however, the specific OX pathways that modulate this behavior remain unknown. The goal of this study was to further elucidate the role of the OX system in binge-like EtOH drinking using behavioral, molecular, and pharmacological techniques.

Methods

The drinking-in-the-dark (DID) paradigm was used to model binge-like drinking behavior in male C57BL/6J mice. Experiment 1 examined changes in the OX precursor, prepro-orexin, within the hypothalamus following multiple cycle EtOH or sucrose DID using polymerase chain

SUBMITTER: Olney JJ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5332299 | biostudies-literature | 2017 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature