Neurotensin in the posterior thalamic paraventricular nucleus: inhibitor of pharmacologically relevant ethanol drinking.

ABSTRACT: Individuals prone to ethanol overconsumption may have preexisting neurochemical disturbances that contribute to their vulnerability. This study examined the paraventricular nucleus of the thalamus (PVT), a limbic structure recently shown to participate in ethanol intake. To identify individuals prone to ethanol overconsumption, we tested Long-Evans rats in behavioral paradigms and found high levels of vertical time (rearing behavior) in a novel activity chamber to be a consistent predictor of subsequent excessive 20 percent ethanol drinking under the intermittent access model. Examining neurochemicals in the PVT, we found before ethanol exposure that prone rats with high rearing, compared with non-prone rats, had significantly lower levels of neurotensin (NTS) mRNA and peptide in the poste

SUBMITTER: Pandey S 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5839915 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature