Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 28, 2026
07:50
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
Methylnaltrexone attenuates taste aversion conditioned by low-dose ethanol
J B Bedingfield1, F A Holloway
1University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Oklahoma City 73190-3000, USA.
Alcohol (Fayetteville, N.Y.)
|January 14, 1998
Summary
Ethanol (EtOH) aversive effects may involve peripheral opioid receptors. Blocking these receptors with methylnaltrexone (MNTX) slightly reduced EtOH
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Pharmacology
- Behavioral Science
Background:
- Peripheral opioid receptors in the gut mediate aversive effects.
- Ethanol (EtOH) administration stimulates endogenous opioids and tetrahydroisoquinolines (TIQs).
- Both EtOH-induced opioids and TIQs activate opioid receptors.
Purpose of the Study:
- To test if EtOH's aversive effects are mediated by peripheral opioid receptors.
- To investigate if EtOH-induced opioids or TIQs activate these receptors.
Main Methods:
- Used taste conditioning (CTA) paradigms in animals.
- Administered EtOH and pretreated with methylnaltrexone (MNTX), a peripheral opioid receptor antagonist.
- Measured EtOH conditioned taste aversions (CTAs) and blood EtOH levels (BELs).
Main Results:
- EtOH CTAs were slightly attenuated by MNTX pretreatment.
- MNTX alone did not cause taste preference or aversion.
- MNTX pretreatment led to slightly lower BELs, though not consistently across all doses.
Conclusions:
- A portion of EtOH's aversive conditioning effects may be mediated via peripheral opioid receptors.
- The precise mechanism of MNTX's attenuation of EtOH effects requires further investigation.
More Related Videos
Related Concept Videos
01:27CNS Depressants: Alcohol and Nicotine
Ethanol, a clear colorless alcohol, has been consumed by humans for millennia, but its effects on the body are far from benign. At lower doses, it induces decreased inhibitions and loquaciousness, leading to its social appeal. However, it can cause severe consequences at higher doses, such as coma and respiratory depression, due to its zero-order elimination kinetics. Chronic ethanol abuse wreaks havoc on multiple organ systems, particularly the CNS and the liver. Abrupt cessation of ethanol...
01:21Chemotherapy-Induced Nausea and Vomiting: Cannabinoids
Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) is a phytocannabinoid that primarily interacts with the CB1 receptor, a type of G protein-coupled receptor (GPCR) predominantly in and around the chemoreceptor trigger zone (CTZ) and emetic center. THC also blocks the serotonin receptor activity in the dorsal vagal complex (DVC) by inhibiting serotonin release. THC exerts its anti-emetic effects through these interactions, which are beneficial for patients undergoing chemotherapy.
Two synthetic agonists of THC,...
Two synthetic agonists of THC,...
01:14Conditioned Taste Aversion
Conditioned taste aversion, also known as sauce béarnaise syndrome, is a phenomenon in which an individual develops an aversion to a certain food taste following a negative experience, typically illness. This form of aversion is a type of classical conditioning in which the taste of the food (conditioned stimulus, CS) is associated with the experience of illness (unconditioned stimulus, UCS).
A notable characteristic of conditioned taste aversion is that it often requires only a single exposure...
A notable characteristic of conditioned taste aversion is that it often requires only a single exposure...