Involvement of corticosterone in the modulation of ethanol consumption in the rat

Several studies report that rats exposed to stressful conditions may increase their ethanol consumption. Stress is accompanied by a rise in the secretion of adrenocortical hormones, and the possibility that these hormones exert an influence on ethanol consumption should be considered. The present investigation addressed this issue by studying the effect of adrenalectomy (ADX) and subsequent corticosterone (CORT) or aldosterone (ALDO) treatment on ethanol intake. The results showed that ADX rats decreased their ethanol intake compared to the sham-operated controls and that treatment with CORT restored the intake of ethanol to the preoperative level. In contrast, treatment with ALDO (0.25 or 0.75 mg/kg) had no effect on ethanol intake. Biochemical analyses showed increases in monoamine turnover in the brain stem and limbic forebrain after ADX. The reduction of ethanol consumption caused by ADX may thus be specifically attributed to the loss of one of the adrenal hormones, CORT. The results indicate that CORT may be a factor of importance in the modulation of alcohol consumption.