title: Suppression by baclofen of alcohol deprivation effect in Sardinian alcohol-preferring (sP) rats.
abstract: Alcohol deprivation effect (ADE), i.e. the transient increase in alcohol intake that takes place in laboratory animals after a period of alcohol deprivation, has been proposed to model alcohol relapses in alcoholics. The present study investigated the effect of the GABA(B) receptor agonist, baclofen, on the development of ADE in selectively bred Sardinian alcohol-preferring (sP) rats. Acute administration of non-sedative doses of baclofen (0, 1, 1.7 and 3 mg/kg, i.p.) resulted in the complete suppression of the extra-amount of alcohol consumed during the first hour of re-access to alcohol after 7 days of deprivation. These results implicate the GABA(B) receptor in the neural substrate mediating ADE and suggest that baclofen may possess anti-relapse properties.
authors.affiliation: C.N.R. Institute for Neurogenetics and Neuropharmacology, c/o 'Bernard B. Brodie' Department of Neuroscience, University of Cagliari, S.S. 554, Km. 4.5, I-09042, Monserrato, CA, Italy. colomb@unica.it
authors.forename: Giancarlo
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Colombo
authors.forename: Salvatore
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Serra
authors.forename: Giuliana
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Brunetti
authors.forename: Giovanni
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Vacca
authors.forename: Mauro A M
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Carai
authors.forename: Gian Luigi
authors.initials: GL
authors.lastname: Gessa
mesh_terms: D000437:Alcoholism / Q000235:genetics / Q000523:psychology*; D000818:Animals; D001418:Baclofen / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D002492:Central Nervous System Depressants / Q000009:adverse effects*; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D000431:Ethanol / Q000009:adverse effects*; D018755:GABA Agonists / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D008297:Male; D051381:Rats; D013375:Substance Withdrawal Syndrome / Q000188:drug therapy*; D013695:Temperance / Q000523:psychology
chemical_list: D002492:Central Nervous System Depressants; D018755:GABA Agonists; D000431:Ethanol; D001418:Baclofen