title: Chronic intermittent ethanol exposure during adolescence: Effects on stress-induced social alterations and social drinking in adulthood.
abstract: We previously observed lasting and sex-specific detrimental consequences of early adolescent intermittent ethanol exposure (AIE), with male, but not female, rats showing social anxiety-like alterations when tested as adults. The present study used Sprague Dawley rats to assess whether social alterations induced by AIE (3.5g/kg, intragastrically, every other day, between postnatal days [P] 25-45) are further exacerbated by stressors later in life. Another aim was to determine whether AIE alone or in combination with stress influenced intake of a sweetened ethanol solution (Experiment 1) or a sweetened solution ("supersac") alone (Experiment 2) under social circumstances. Animals were exposed to restraint on P66-P70 (90min/day) or left nonstressed, with corticosterone (CORT) levels assessed on day 1 and day 5 in Experiment 2. Social anxiety-like behavior emerged after AIE in non-stressed males, but not females, whereas stress-induced social anxiety was evident only in water-exposed males and females. Adult-typical habituation of the CORT response to repeated restraint was not evident in adult animals after AIE, a lack of habituation reminiscent of that normally evident in adolescents. Neither AIE nor stress affected ethanol intake under social circumstances, although AIE and restraint independently increased adolescent-typical play fighting in males during social drinking. Among males, the combination of AIE and restraint suppressed "supersac" intake; this index of depression-like behavior was not seen in females. The results provide experimental evidence associating adolescent alcohol exposure, later stress, anxiety, and depression, with young adolescent males being particularly vulnerable to long-lasting adverse effects of repeated ethanol. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled SI: Adolescent plasticity.
authors.affiliation: Center for Development and Behavioral Neuroscience, Department of Psychology, Binghamton University, Binghamton, NY 13902-6000, USA. Electronic address: varlinsk@binghamton.edu.
authors.forename: Elena I
authors.initials: EI
authors.lastname: Varlinskaya
authors.affiliation: Center for Development and Behavioral Neuroscience, Department of Psychology, Binghamton University, Binghamton, NY 13902-6000, USA.
authors.forename: Esther U
authors.initials: EU
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.affiliation: Center for Development and Behavioral Neuroscience, Department of Psychology, Binghamton University, Binghamton, NY 13902-6000, USA.
authors.forename: Linda P
authors.initials: LP
authors.lastname: Spear
mesh_terms: D000375:Aging / Q000502:physiology / Q000523:psychology; D000428:Alcohol Drinking / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000523:psychology; D000818:Animals; D001007:Anxiety / Q000503:physiopathology; D063425:Binge Drinking / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000523:psychology; D002492:Central Nervous System Depressants / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D003345:Corticosterone / Q000097:blood; D003863:Depression / Q000503:physiopathology; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D000431:Ethanol / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D005260:Female; D006185:Habituation, Psychophysiologic / Q000502:physiology; D008297:Male; D009043:Motor Activity / Q000502:physiology; D011897:Random Allocation; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D055500:Resilience, Psychological; D012149:Restraint, Physical; D012727:Sex Characteristics; D012741:Sexual Maturation / Q000502:physiology; D012919:Social Behavior; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000503:physiopathology
chemical_list: D002492:Central Nervous System Depressants; D000431:Ethanol; D003345:Corticosterone
keywords: Adolescence; Anhedonia; Anxiety; Ethanol; Sex differences; Social facilitation; Stress