Convulsive and non-convulsive ethanol withdrawal behaviour in rats with lesions of the noradrenergic locus coeruleus...

The ascending noradrenergic pathways from the locus coeruleus were lesioned bilaterally in 10 rats by intracerebral 6-hydroxydopamine injections. Ten rats were sham-operated. All animals were subjected to a 4-day ethanol intoxication period using intragastric intubation. Intoxication and withdrawal assessments were performed blindly. The 6-hydroxydopamine lesions did not appear to affect tolerance to ethanol. During withdrawal, however, lesioned animals showed minor, but statistically significant changes in scores of certain non-convulsive withdrawal signs, but incidence and intensity of spontaneous and audiogenic convulsive seizures were not different between the groups.