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Oxytocin Reduces Ethanol Self-Administration in Mice
Courtney E King1, William C Griffin1, Lauryn N Luderman1
1Charleston Alcohol Research Center, Departments of Psychiatry and Neuroscience, Medical University of South Carolina & VAMC, Charleston, South Carolina.
Alcoholism, Clinical and Experimental Research
|February 18, 2017
Summary
Oxytocin significantly reduces alcohol consumption and motivation to drink in mice. These findings suggest oxytocin
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Pharmacology
- Addiction Research
Background:
- Excessive alcohol consumption is a major health issue with limited treatment options.
- The central oxytocin system is a potential therapeutic target for addiction.
- Current research investigates oxytocin's role in reducing alcohol intake.
Purpose of the Study:
- To test the hypothesis that oxytocin administration reduces ethanol (EtOH) consumption.
- To evaluate the effects of oxytocin on EtOH self-administration in various behavioral models.
- To determine if oxytocin's effects are specific to EtOH or a general sedative effect.
Main Methods:
- Male C57BL/6J mice were used in binge-like drinking and two-bottle choice drinking models.
- Lickometer circuits assessed temporal intake patterns during EtOH access.
- Operant conditioning assessed EtOH and sucrose self-administration under fixed and progressive ratios.
- Systemic administration of varying oxytocin doses (0-10 mg/kg) was employed.
Main Results:
- Oxytocin dose-dependently reduced EtOH consumption by up to 45% in binge models.
- Oxytocin decreased motivation for EtOH without affecting general locomotor activity or fluid intake.
- Oxytocin reduced operant responding for EtOH and sucrose, but specifically decreased EtOH motivation at effective doses.
- Oxytocin receptor antagonist blocked the EtOH consumption reduction, supporting receptor involvement.
Conclusions:
- Oxytocin effectively reduces ethanol consumption across different self-administration models.
- The observed effects are not attributable to general sedative properties of oxytocin.
- Oxytocin selectively reduces motivation for alcohol, sparing natural rewards like sucrose.
- These findings support the therapeutic potential of oxytocin for alcohol use disorder.
