Effects of hippocampal lesions on ethanol intake in mice

The effects of bilateral electrolytic hippocampal lesions on voluntary ethanol selection were examined in five groups (n = 10 each) of male mice. Mice sustained lesions in the dorsal hippocampus (DH), central hippocampus (CH), ventral hippocampus (VH), were sham-operated (SH) or left unoperated. CH mice exhibited a preference for ethanol compared with all other groups (p less than 0.01). In a second experiment, ethanol preference threshold and 24-hour drinking patterns were examined in CH and SH mice. These data revealed a higher preference threshold in CH mice, but not difference in drinking activity periods compared with controls. The central hippocampal area may be important in ethanol ingestive behavior in mice.