1
|
Costa PA, Everett NA, Turner AJ, Umpierrez LS, Baracz SJ, Cornish JL. Adolescent alcohol binge drinking and withdrawal: behavioural, brain GFAP-positive astrocytes and acute methamphetamine effects in adult female rats. Psychopharmacology (Berl) 2024:10.1007/s00213-024-06580-2. [PMID: 38705893 DOI: 10.1007/s00213-024-06580-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/27/2023] [Accepted: 03/25/2024] [Indexed: 05/07/2024]
Abstract
RATIONALE Alcopop beverages are generally the first alcoholic beverage that young females drink which contain high levels of sugar and alcohol. The over-consumption of these drinks may encourage alcohol co-administration with methamphetamine (METH) impacting on drinking behaviour and glial function. AIMS The aims of this study were to evaluate the effect of adolescent binge alcohol exposure on consumption level, anxiety-like behaviour, cross-sensitization with METH and on astrocyte expression in reward related brain regions. METHODS Adolescent female Sprague-Dawley rats had daily 1-hour oral alcohol consumption of alcopop (ALCP; with sucrose) or ethanol-only (ETOH; without sucrose), transitioned from 5 to 15% (v/v) ethanol content for 34 days. Water and sucrose groups act as controls. During alcohol withdrawal, rats were tested for anxiety on the elevated plus maze (EPM) and locomotor activity following saline or METH (1 mg/kg i.p) treatment. Brains were then collected to assess astrocyte immunofluorescence for glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) in reward-related brain regions. RESULTS Rats pretreated with 5% ALCP consumed significantly more volume and ethanol intake when compared to 5% EtOH rats. Both ALCP and EtOH groups had a higher preference ratio for 5% than 15% alcohol solutions and ALCP rats had greater ethanol intake at 15% than EtOH rats. Alcohol withdrawal showed no significant differences between groups on anxiety, METH cross-sensitization effects or GFAP intensity in the regions studied. CONCLUSIONS Overall, the addition of sucrose to alcoholic solutions encouraged female rats to consume larger volumes and greater ethanol intake compared to ethanol-only solutions, yet did not have long lasting effects on behaviour and astrocytes.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Priscila A Costa
- Behavioural Neuropharmacology Laboratory, School of Psychological Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Health and Human Sciences, Macquarie University, North Ryde, Sydney, NSW, 2109, Australia.
| | - Nicholas A Everett
- Behavioural Neuropharmacology Laboratory, School of Psychological Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Health and Human Sciences, Macquarie University, North Ryde, Sydney, NSW, 2109, Australia
| | - Anita J Turner
- Behavioural Neuropharmacology Laboratory, School of Psychological Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Health and Human Sciences, Macquarie University, North Ryde, Sydney, NSW, 2109, Australia
| | - Laísa S Umpierrez
- Behavioural Neuropharmacology Laboratory, School of Psychological Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Health and Human Sciences, Macquarie University, North Ryde, Sydney, NSW, 2109, Australia
| | - Sarah J Baracz
- Behavioural Neuropharmacology Laboratory, School of Psychological Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Health and Human Sciences, Macquarie University, North Ryde, Sydney, NSW, 2109, Australia
| | - Jennifer L Cornish
- Behavioural Neuropharmacology Laboratory, School of Psychological Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Health and Human Sciences, Macquarie University, North Ryde, Sydney, NSW, 2109, Australia.
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Stafford AM, Yamamoto BK, Phillips TJ. Combined and sequential effects of alcohol and methamphetamine in animal models. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2021; 131:248-269. [PMID: 34543650 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2021.09.019] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/25/2020] [Revised: 09/11/2021] [Accepted: 09/12/2021] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Comorbid drug use, often alcohol with other drugs, poses significant health and societal concerns. Methamphetamine is among the illicit drugs most often co-used with alcohol. The current review examines the animal literature for impacts of comorbid alcohol and methamphetamine exposure. We found evidence for additive or synergistic effects of combined or sequential exposure on behavior and physiology. Dopaminergic, serotonergic, and glutamatergic systems are all impacted by combined exposure to alcohol and methamphetamine and cyclooxygenase-2 activity plays an important role in their combined neurotoxic effects. Adverse consequences of comorbid exposure include altered brain development with prenatal exposure, impaired learning and memory, motor deficits, gastrotoxicity, hepatotoxicity, and augmented intake under some conditions. Given high susceptibility to drug experimentation in adolescence, studies of co-exposure during the adolescent period and of how adolescent exposure to one drug impacts later use or sensitivity to the other drug should be a priority. Further, to gain traction on prevention and treatment, additional research to identify motivational and neurobiological drivers and consequences of comorbid use is needed.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Alexandra M Stafford
- Department of Behavioral Neuroscience, Portland Alcohol Abuse Research Center and Methamphetamine Abuse Research Center, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, OR, USA.
| | - Bryan K Yamamoto
- Department of Pharmacology & Toxicology, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, IN, USA
| | - Tamara J Phillips
- Department of Behavioral Neuroscience, Portland Alcohol Abuse Research Center and Methamphetamine Abuse Research Center, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, OR, USA; Veterans Affairs Portland Health Care System, Portland, OR, USA
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
Galaj E, Barrera E, Morris D, Ma YY, Ranaldi R. Aberrations in Incentive Learning and Responding to Heroin in Male Rats After Adolescent or Adult Chronic Binge-Like Alcohol Exposure. Alcohol Clin Exp Res 2020; 44:1214-1223. [PMID: 32311102 DOI: 10.1111/acer.14341] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/17/2020] [Accepted: 04/08/2020] [Indexed: 12/25/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Binge drinking is a serious problem among adolescents and young adults despite its adverse consequences on the brain and behavior. One area that remains poorly understood concerns the impact of chronic intermittent ethanol (CIE) exposure on incentive learning. METHODS Here, we examined the effects of CIE exposure during different developmental stages on conditioned approach and conditioned reward learning in rats experiencing acute or protracted withdrawal from alcohol. Two or 21 days after adolescent or adult CIE exposure, male rats were exposed to pairings of a light stimulus (CS) and food pellets for 3 consecutive daily sessions (30 CS-food pellet pairings per session). This was followed by conditioned approach testing measuring responses (food trough head entries) to the CS-only presentations and by conditioned reward testing measuring responses on a lever producing the CS and on another producing a tone. We then measured behavioral sensitization to repeated injections of heroin (2 mg/kg/d for 9 days). RESULTS Adolescent and adult alcohol-treated rats showed significantly impaired conditioned reward learning regardless of withdrawal period (acute or prolonged). We found no evidence of changes to conditioned approach learning after adolescent or adult exposure to CIE. Finally, in addition to producing long-term impairments in incentive learning, CIE exposure enhanced locomotor activity in response to heroin and had no effect on behavioral sensitization to heroin regardless of age and withdrawal period. CONCLUSIONS Our work sets a framework for identifying CIE-induced alterations in incentive learning and inducing susceptibility to subsequent opioid effects.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Ewa Galaj
- From the, Molecular Targets and Medication Discovery Branch, (EG), National Institute on Drug Abuse Intramural Research Program, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
| | - Eddy Barrera
- Department of Psychology, (EB, DM, RR), Queens College, City University of New York, Flushing, New York, USA
| | - Debra Morris
- Department of Psychology, (EB, DM, RR), Queens College, City University of New York, Flushing, New York, USA
| | - Yao-Ying Ma
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, (Y-YM), Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, Indiana, USA
| | - Robert Ranaldi
- Department of Psychology, (EB, DM, RR), Queens College, City University of New York, Flushing, New York, USA
| |
Collapse
|
4
|
Sern KR, Fultz EK, Coelho MA, Bryant CD, Szumlinski KK. A prior history of binge-drinking increases sensitivity to the motivational valence of methamphetamine in female C57BL/6J mice. SUBSTANCE ABUSE-RESEARCH AND TREATMENT 2020; 14:1178221819897073. [PMID: 32009790 PMCID: PMC6971957 DOI: 10.1177/1178221819897073] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/04/2019] [Accepted: 12/02/2019] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
Methamphetamine (MA) and alcohol use disorders exhibit a high degree of co-morbidity and sequential alcohol-MA mixing increases risk for co-abuse. Recently, we reported greater MA-conditioned reward in male C57BL/6J mice with a prior history of binge alcohol-drinking (14 days of 2-hour access to 5, 10, 20 and 40% alcohol). As female mice tend to binge-drink more alcohol than males and females tend to be more sensitive than males to the psychomotor-activating properties of MA, we first characterized the effects of binge-drinking upon MA-induced place-conditioning (four pairings of 0.25, 0.5, 1, 2, or 4 mg/kg IP) in females and then incorporated our prior data to analyze for sex differences in MA-conditioned reward. Prior binge-drinking history did not significantly affect locomotor hyperactivity or its sensitization in female mice. However, the dose-response function for place-conditioning was shifted to the left of water-drinking controls, indicating an increase in sensitivity to MA-conditioned reward. The examination of sex differences revealed no sex differences in alcohol intake, although females exhibited greater MA-induced locomotor stimulation than males, irrespective of their prior drinking history. No statistically significant sex difference was apparent for the potentiation of MA-conditioned reward produced by prior binge-drinking history. If relevant to humans, these data argue that both males and females with a prior binge-drinking history are similarly vulnerable to MA abuse and it remains to be determined whether or not the neural substrates underpinning this increased vulnerability reflect common or sex-specific adaptations in reward-related brain regions.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Kimberly R Sern
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Developmental and Cell Biology, University of California Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA, USA
| | - Elissa K Fultz
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Developmental and Cell Biology, University of California Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA, USA
| | - Michal A Coelho
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Developmental and Cell Biology, University of California Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA, USA
| | - Camron D Bryant
- Laboratory of Addiction Genetics, Department of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Karen K Szumlinski
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Developmental and Cell Biology, University of California Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA, USA.,Department of Molecular, Developmental and Cell Biology, University of California Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA, USA
| |
Collapse
|