Infantile ethanol intake is modulated by pre- and postnatal experiences with the drug.

PUETA, M.; ABATE, P.; SPEAR, N.E.; MOLINA, J.C.

Santa Barbara, California.

Congreso; 28th Scientific Meeting of the Research Society on Alcoholism; 2005

Research Society on Alcoholism

INFANTILE ETHANOL INTAKE IS MODULATED BY PRE- AND POSTNATAL EXPERIENCES WITH THE DRUG. M. Pueta, P. Abate, N.E. Spear & J.C. Molina. Instituto de Investigación Médica M. M. Ferreyra, Argentina and Dept. of Psychology, Binghamton University, Fac. Psicologia, Univ. Nacional Cordoba. Near-term fetuses and preweanling rats acquire ethanol-related information and express this memory later in development. Recent studies also indicate that pre- and early postnatal ethanol experiences interact in terms of facilitating the detection of minimal ethanol concentrations in different liquid vehicles. The main goal of the present study was to assess the impact of these alcohol-related experiences upon subsequent infantile consumption patterns of varying alcohol concentrations. Pregnant rats were administered with ethanol (1-g/kg or 2-g/kg, i.g.) or water during gestational days 17-20. After birth, pups suckled from dams subjected to an i.g. administration of either ethanol (2.5-g/kg) or water during postnatal days (PDs) 3, 5, 7, 9, 11, and 13. Pups representative from all treatments were evaluated in terms of ethanol consumption during PDs 15 and 16. Rats received intraoral infusions of water, 0.22 %, 5 % or 10 % v/v ethanol in distilled water. Preweanlings were weighed before and after the intake test to calculate ethanol consumption scores. Water intake scores were not affected by pre- or postnatal treatments. Pertinent ANOVAs indicated that ethanol intake scores significantly varied as a function of the interaction between pre- and postnatal ethanol experiences and the day of evaluation. Infants exposed to both ethanol doses in utero that later interacted with an intoxicated dam consumed significantly higher amounts of ethanol than did all the remaining groups. This difference was particularly observable during the second day of evaluation. The interaction prenatal treatment x postnatal experience x ethanol solution at test, also achieved significance. Follow-up ANOVAs and post-hoc tests showed that pups exposed to 1g/kg ethanol in utero and to an ethanol-intoxicated dam breastfeeding consumed heightened amounts of the 5% v/v ethanol solution than did pups with no prior ethanol experience or only exposed to the this dose during gestation or to an intoxicated nursing mother. When pups were prenatally exposed to the 2 g/kg ethanol dose, they showed heightened ethanol consumption of the 5% v/v ethanol solution independently from additional postnatal drug experiences. This study shows that prenatal experiences with a relatively high ethanol dose results in subsequent heightened ethanol intake. Lower doses administered in utero exert a similar effect whenever additional postnatal experience with the drug is provided.