Cholecystokinin octapeptide reduces ethanol intake in food- and water-sated rats

The putative satiety peptide cholecystokinin octapeptide (CCK-8) has been shown to reduce ethanol intake induced by prior fluid deprivation. Since fluid-deprived animals tend to reduce their food intake and consequently become hungry, the ability of CCK-8 to reduce ethanol intake might be limited to conditions where the motivation for food and fluid are accentuated. The present study assessed this possibility by examining the effect of peripheral injections of CCK-8 on voluntary ethanol intake fostered by the limited access procedure which uses food- and water-sated rats. Under these conditions CCK-8 still produced a dose-dependent decrease in ethanol intake. These results demonstrate that CCK-8 reduces ethanol intake even in the absence of hunger and thirst drives.