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Updated: Jul 19, 2026

A Method for Evaluating the Reinforcing Properties of Ethanol in Rats without Water Deprivation, Saccharin Fading or Extended Access Training
Published on: January 29, 2017
The increased ethanol preference in rats induced by choice, darkness, or drugs is reduced by ritanserin
1Department of Physiology, University of Otago Medical School, Dunedin, New Zealand.
Abstract:
We tested the hypothesis that ritanserin, a serotonin S2 antagonist, reduces voluntary and induced forms of ethanol drinking. We gave 10 mg/kg ritanserin IP or SC to groups of rats given either a) a free choice between 3% ethanol and water, or b) kept in the dark for 5 weeks and given a choice between a range of ethanol concentrations (3-25%) and water, or c) implanted with osmotic pumps filled with tetrahydro-beta carboline and given a choice between a range of ethanol concentrations and water. In each case, ritanserin significantly reduced ethanol consumption and ethanol preference for 8-10 days after the last injection.
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