Relationship between ethanol preference and sensation/novelty seeking.
High- and low-avoidance Roman inbred rat strains (RHA-I, RLA-I) were selected for extreme differences in two-way active avoidance. RHA-I rats also express less anxiety than RLA-I rats. This study compared male Roman rats in ethanol preference and sensation/novelty seeking. Rats were first exposed in counterbalanced order to the hole-board test (forced exposure to novelty) and the Y-maze and emergence tests (free choice between novel and familiar locations). Then, rats were tested in 24-h, two-bottle preference tests with water in one bottle and ethanol (2, 4, 6, 8, or 10% in successive days). Compared to RLA-I rats, RHA-I rats showed (1) higher frequency and time in head dipping, (2) higher activity, and (3) lower frequency of rearing and grooming in the hole-board test, and (4) remained in the novel arm longer in the Y-maze test. No strain differences were observed in the emergence test. RHA-I rats exhibited higher preference for and consumed more ethanol than RLA-I rats at all concentrations. However, both strains preferred ethanol over water for 2-4% concentrations, but water over ethanol for 6-10% concentrations. Factorial analysis with all the rats pooled identified a two-factor solution, one grouping preferred ethanol concentrations (2-4%) with head dipping and grooming in the hole board, and another factor grouping the nonpreferred ethanol concentrations (6-10%) with activity in the hole board and novel-arm time in the Y-maze test. These results show that preference for ethanol is associated with different aspects of behavior measured in sensation/novelty-seeking tests.
Universidad de Jaén, Spain.
Lidia
L
Manzo
Universidad de Jaén, Spain.
Ma José
MJ
Gómez
Universidad de Jaén, Spain.
José E
JE
Callejas-Aguilera
Universidad de Jaén, Spain.
Rocío
R
Donaire
Universidad de Jaén, Spain.
Marta
M
Sabariego
Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Spain.
Alberto
A
Fernández-Teruel
Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Spain.
Antoni
A
Cañete
Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Spain.
Gloria
G
Blázquez
Texas Christian University, USA.
Mauricio R
MR
Papini
Universidad de Jaén, Spain. Electronic address: mctorres@ujaen.es.
Carmen
C
Torres
D000428:Alcohol Drinking / Q000503:physiopathology*; D000818:Animals; D002492:Central Nervous System Depressants / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D002755:Choice Behavior / Q000187:drug effects; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D000431:Ethanol / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D005106:Exploratory Behavior / Q000502:physiology*; D006120:Grooming / Q000187:drug effects; D008297:Male; D018782:Maze Learning / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology; D009042:Motivation; D009043:Motor Activity / Q000187:drug effects; D051381:Rats; D011919:Rats, Inbred Strains; D012677:Sensation / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology*; D013045:Species Specificity
D002492:Central Nervous System Depressants; D000431:Ethanol
Ethanol preference; Novelty seeking; Roman high- and low-avoidance strains; Sensation seeking