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Updated: Apr 12, 2026

Chronic Intermittent Ethanol Vapor Exposure Paired with Two-Bottle Choice to Model Alcohol Use Disorder
Published on: June 23, 2023
Modulation of neural circuit actvity by ethanol in basolateral amygdala
1Dept. of Pediatrics, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC27710, USA.
Abstract:
Ethanol actions in the amygdala formation may underlie in part the reinforcing effects of ethanol consumption. Previously a physiological phenomenon in the basolateral amygdala (BLA) that is dependent on neuronal network activity, compound postsynaptic potentials (cPSPs) were characterized. Effects of acute ethanol application on the frequency of cPSPs were subsequently investigated. Whole cell patch clamp recordings were performed from identified projection neurons in a rat brain slice preparation containing the amygdala formation. Acute ethanol exposure had complex effects on cPSP frequency, with both increases and decreases dependent on concentration, duration of exposure and age of the animal. Ethanol produces complex biphasic effects on synaptically-driven network activity in the BLA. These findings may relate to subjective effects of ethanol on arousal and anxiolysis in humans.
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