Assessing appetitive and consummatory phases of ethanol self-administration in C57BL/6J mice under operant conditions: regulation by mGlu5 receptor antagonism

Abstract

RATIONALE: The development of mouse models of ethanol consumption and ethanol-seeking behavior is of particular importance in understanding the underlying mechanisms of drug abuse because these models can enable an analysis of an effect of specific genotype on drug-seeking behavior and the interaction of potential therapeutics with genotype. However, there are some limitations with present models, notably the inability to examine appetitive and consummatory behavior separately. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In the present study, C57BL/6 mice were trained to self-administer 10% ethanol in a modified operant protocol that allowed a clear delineation of consummatory and appetitive phases. The utility ..