Mood disorders and alcohol consumption in pre-clinical and epidemiological studies

RUIZ P.; CALLIARI A; GENOVESE, P; PILATTI, ANGELINA; PAUTASSI R.M.

Kyoto

Congreso; 19th Congress of International Society for Biomedical Research on Alcoholism (ISBRA 2018); 2018

International Society for Biomedical Research on Alcoholism

Mood disorders and alcohol consumption co-ocurr and emerge during adolescence, yet there is controversy as tohow they relate to each other, and their neurobiological substrates. We analyzed these phenomena via preclinicaland epidemiological studies. We induced depressive- and mania-like states in adolescent rats byadministering reserpine or amphetamine drugs. The effectiveness of these models were tested via measurments ofdopamine in the insula, and by behavioral tests of exploratory behavior (i.e., open field). The main results werethat females, but not males, with experimentally-induced depression exhibited heightened ethanol intake duringlate adolescence; whereas treatment with amphetamine, increased ethanol intake in males, but not in females,rats. These results indicate that depression and mania, in females and males respectively, can trigger the initiationof voluntary ethanol drinking in adolescence. We also conducted an online survey in Uruguayan youth (n=1527,27% men, mean age=23.5±3.5 years) that measured alcohol use and consequences, and psychological discomfort.We observed a signficant asssociation between alcohol use and psychological discomfort, which were fairlysimilar across sex The results support the hypothesis postulating mood variations, with correlated alterations ininsular dopamine levels, as a predisposing factor for problematic alcohol consumption.