Baclofen and naltrexone, but not N-acetylcysteine, affect voluntary alcohol drinking in rats regardless of individual levels of alcohol intake.

ABSTRACT: In humans, there is profound individual variation in the risk of alcohol use disorder (AUD). Because GABA, opioid and glutamate neurotransmission have been implicated in AUD, functional differences in these neural systems may underlie the individual vulnerability to AUD. We therefore determined the effects of drugs affecting GABA, opioid and glutamatergic neurotransmission on alcohol consumption in rats that differed in baseline alcohol intake. Subgroups of low-, medium- and high-alcohol-drinking rats were selected on the basis of alcohol consumption using an intermittent alcohol access procedure. The subgroups were treated with the GABAB receptor agonist baclofen, the opioid receptor antagonist naltrexone and the cysteine precursor N-acetylcysteine, and the effects on alcohol intake and p

SUBMITTER: Minnaard AM 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7960148 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature