Investigating individual differences in aversion-resistant drinking behavior (2024)
Undergraduate: Ana Munoz
Faculty Advisor: Joyce Besheer
Department: Bowles Center for Alcohol Studies
Investigating individual differences in aversion-resistant drinking behavior _x000D_
Ana Munoz1, Maya N. Bluitt1,2, Wen Liu1, Joyce Besheer1,2,3_x000D_
Bowles Center for Alcohol Studies1, Neuroscience Curriculum2, Department of Psychiatry3, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill_x000D_
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Aversion-resistant alcohol drinking, characterized by persistent consumption despite negative consequences, emerges in only a minority of those who drink alcohol and is a key feature of alcohol use disorder (AUD). This project classifies individual differences in aversion-resistant drinking through the implementation of alcohol self-administration (SA) paired with random foot shock punishment in male rats, resulting in distinct subgroups of shock-sensitive (SS), intermediate (I), and shock-resistant (SR) rats. To explore brain activity differences underlying these behavioral traits, we first employ c-Fos immunohistochemistry to measure neuronal activation during punished SA in the prelimbic region (PrL) of the medial prefrontal cortex, a known center for behavioral inhibition. Next, we investigate individual differences in aversion-resistant drinking after extended alcohol history using chronic intermittent ethanol (CIE) exposure. Our findings show that when foot shock is combined with alcohol delivery, rats exhibit individual differences in operant SA behavior. This variability is observed although alcohol history is equivalent and initial responding for alcohol at baseline is comparable. There was reduced neuronal activation within the prelimbic region of shock-resistant rats, in contrast to intermediate rats. This reduction suggests diminished neuronal activation during punished SA in the SR subgroup. The data indicated that shock-sensitive (SS) rats exposed to alcohol vapor exhibited increased self-administration in unpunished conditions compared to air-exposed SS rats. While overall ethanol vapor exposure induced a small, nonsignificant increase in self-administration, these effects varied across subgroups._x000D_
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Supported by AA026537