Behavioral Sensitivity and Ethanol Potentiation of the N-Methyl-d-Aspartate Receptor Antagonist MK-801 in a Rat Line Selected for High Ethanol Sensitivity

Ethanol attenuates peripheral NMDAR-mediated vascular oxidative stress and pressor response

There are no studies on the acute effect of ethanol on peripheral N-methyl-d-aspartate receptor (NMDAR)-mediated increases in reactive oxygen species (ROS) and blood pressure (BP). We tested the hypothesis that ethanol antagonism of peripheral NMDAR dampens systemic NMDA-evoked increases in vascular ROS and BP. We investigated the effect of ethanol (1 g/kg) on BP and heart rate (HR) responses elicited by systemic bolus (125-1000 μg/kg, intra-venous [i.v.]) or infused (180 μg/kg/min) NMDA in conscious male Sprague-Dawley rats. We also hypothesized that peripheral NMDAR blockade with DL-2-Amino-5-phosphonopentanoic acid (AP-5; 5 mg/kg, i.v.) uncovers an ethanol- (1 or 1.5 g/kg) evoked hypotensive response. Ethanol attenuated the peripheral NMDAR-mediated pressor and bradycardic responses caused by NMDA infusion, and ex vivo studies revealed parallel ethanol attenuation of peripheral NMDAR-mediated increases in vascular ROS. While ethanol (1 or 1.5 g/kg) alone had no effect on BP, the higher dose caused a hypotensive response in the presence of NMDAR blockade (AP-5). Blood ethanol concentrations were not statistically different in the groups that received ethanol alone or along with NMDA or AP-5. These findings are the first to demonstrate ethanol attenuation of peripheral NMDAR-mediated pressor response, and the uncovering of ethanol-evoked hypotension in the presence of peripheral NMDAR blockade.

Does ethanol act preferentially via selected brain GABAA receptor subtypes? the current evidence is ambiguous

In rodent models, gamma-aminobutyric acid A (GABAA) receptors with the alpha6 and delta subunits, expressed in the cerebellar and cochlear nucleus granule cells, have been linked to ethanol sensitivity and voluntary ethanol drinking. Here, we review the findings. When considering both in vivo contributions and data on cloned receptors, the evidence for direct participation of the alpha6-containing receptors to increased ethanol sensitivity is poor. The alpha6 subunit-knockout mouse lines do not have any changed sensitivity to ethanol, although these mice do display increased benzodiazepine sensitivity. However, in general the compensations occurring in knockout mice (regardless of which particular gene is knocked out) tend to fog interpretations of drug actions at the systems level. For example, the alpha6 knockout mice have increased TASK-1 channel expression in their cerebellar granule cells, which could influence sensitivity to ethanol in the opposite direction to that obtained with the alpha6 knockouts. Indeed, TASK-1 knockout mice are more impaired than wild types in motor skills when given ethanol; this might explain why GABAA receptor alpha6 knockout mice have unchanged ethanol sensitivities. As an alternative to studying knockout mice, we examined the claimed delta subunit-dependent/gamma2 subunit-independent ethanol/[3H]Ro 15-4513 binding sites on GABAA receptors. We looked at [3H]Ro 15-4513 binding in HEK 293 cell membrane homogenates containing rat recombinant alpha6/4beta3delta receptors and in mouse brain sections. Specific high-affinity [3H]Ro 15-4513 binding could not be detected under any conditions to the recombinant receptors or to the cerebellar sections of gamma2(F77I) knockin mice, nor was this binding to brain sections of wild-type C57BL/6 inhibited by 1-100 mM ethanol. Since ethanol may act on many receptor and channel protein targets in neuronal membranes, we consider the alpha6 (and alpha4) subunit-containing GABAA receptors unlikely to be directly responsible for any major part of ethanol's actions. Therefore, we finish the review by discussing more generally alcohol and GABAA receptors and by suggesting potential future directions for this research.

Motor Impairing Effects of Ethanol and Diazepam in Rats Selectively Bred for High and Low Ethanol Consumption in a Limited-Access Paradigm

BACKGROUND

Some clinical studies suggest that an initial low-level response in ethanol sensitivity is a good predictor of risk for developing subsequent high levels of ethanol consumption in humans; however, there are some inconsistencies in the data. In experimental research, this association between low ethanol sensitivity and high ethanol intake has not been consistently reported in studies that have used rat lines that have been genetically selected for differences in ethanol intake under continuous access conditions (e.g., UChA versus UchB, P versus NP, AA versus ANA). The present study investigated ethanol sensitivity in high (HARF) and low (LARF) ethanol-preferring rats selectively bred under limited-access conditions. For comparative purposes, motor impairment induced by diazepam was also examined.

METHODS

Motor impairment was assessed using the tilt plane. Ethanol (1.25, 2.0, and 2.5 g/kg, intraperitoneally) was administered to ethanol-naive male and female HARF and LARF rats, and their performance was assessed at t = 0, 30, and 60 min. Blood ethanol levels were measured in a separate group of ethanol-naive rats. Finally, in a separate group of male and female HARF and LARF rats, diazepam-induced (1, 3, and 10 mg/kg, intraperitoneally) motor impairments were evaluated in a similar manner.

RESULTS

In the ethanol study, HARF rats showed greater dose-dependent impairments than their LARF counterparts. Male rats exhibited greater sensitivity to ethanol-induced impairment than their female counterparts. These observations were unrelated to sex or line differences in the blood ethanol levels achieved. Similar impairments were observed with diazepam, with HARF rats exhibiting greater motor impairment than LARF rats.

CONCLUSIONS

The results suggest that selective breeding for high and low ethanol drinking in a limited-access paradigm has led to inherent differences in sensitivity to ethanol- and diazepam-induced motor impairments. The pattern of diazepam-induced impairments suggests possible variations in GABA(A) receptor activity, although more research is necessary to determine such involvement.

Alcohol and gene expression in the central nervous system

AIMS

To describe recent research focusing on the analysis of gene and protein expression relevant to understanding ethanol consumption, dependence and effects, in order to identify common themes.

METHODS

A selective literature search was used to collate the relevant data.

RESULTS

Over 160 genes have been individually assessed before or after ethanol administration, as well as in genetically selected lines. Techniques for studying gene expression include northern blots, differential display, real time reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and in situ hybridization. More recently, high throughput functional genomic technology, such as DNA microarrays, has been used to examine gene expression. Recent gene expression analyses have dramatically increased the number of candidate genes (nine array papers have illuminated 600 novel gene transcripts that may contribute to alcohol abuse and alcoholism).

CONCLUSIONS

Although functional genomic experiments (transcriptome analysis) have failed to identify a single alcoholism gene, they have illuminated important pathways and gene products that may contribute to the risk of alcohol abuse and alcoholism.

Genes and gene expression in the brain of the alcoholic

Chronic alcoholism leads to localized brain damage, which is prominent in superior frontal cortex but mild in motor cortex. The likelihood of developing alcohol dependence is associated with genetic markers. GABAA receptor expression differs between alcoholics and controls, whereas glutamate receptor differences are muted. We determined whether genotype differentiated the localized expression of glutamate and gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) receptors to influence the severity of alcohol-induced brain damage. Cerebrocortical tissue was obtained at autopsy from alcoholics without alcohol-related disease, alcoholics with cirrhosis, and matched controls. DRD2A, DRD2B, GABB2, EAAT2, and 5HTT genotypes did not divide alcoholic cases and controls on N-methyl-d-aspartate (NMDA) receptor parameters. In contrast, alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH)3 genotype interacted significantly with NMDA receptor efficacy and affinity in a region-specific manner. EAAT2 genotype interacted significantly with local GABAA receptor beta subunit mRNA expression, and GABB2 and DRD2B genotypes with beta subunit isoform protein expression. Genotype may modulate amino acid transmission locally so as to mediate neuronal vulnerability. This has implications for the effectiveness of pharmacological interventions aimed at ameliorating brain damage and, possibly, dependence.

Effects of ethanol on the accumbal output of dopamine, GABA and glutamate in alcohol-tolerant and alcohol-nontolerant rats

Effects of ethanol on the accumbal extracellular concentrations of dopamine, as well as of the amino acid transmitters gamma-amino butyric acid (GABA), glutamate and taurine, were studied in the alcohol-insensitive (alcohol-tolerant, AT) and alcohol-sensitive (alcohol-nontolerant, ANT) rats selected for low and high sensitivity to ethanol-induced motor impairment. Ethanol (2 or 3 g/kg ip) enhanced the output of dopamine and its metabolites in freely moving rats of both lines as measured by in vivo microdialysis. The effect of ethanol on the metabolites of dopamine tended to be stronger in the ANT rats. The smaller dose of ethanol decreased the output of GABA only in the AT rats, whereas the larger dose of ethanol decreased the output of GABA in rats of both lines to a similar degree. Ethanol at the dose of 2 g/kg slightly, but statistically, significantly decreased the output of glutamate in rats of both lines, but the larger dose of ethanol decreased the output of glutamate only in the AT rats. Ethanol at the dose of 2 g/kg induced a small transient increase in the output of taurine within 2 h after its administration in rats of both lines, but the larger dose of ethanol was without significant effect. These results confirm the previous findings that ethanol suppresses the release of GABA more in the AT than ANT rats. Thus, among the neurotransmitter systems we studied, the effects of ethanol might be the most relevant on GABAergic transmission regarding the sensitivity towards ethanol. However, our findings suggest that glutamate is also involved in this respect.

Drug interactions at GABA(A) receptors

Neurotransmitter receptor systems have been the focus of intensive pharmacological research for more than 20 years for basic and applied scientific reasons, but only recently has there been a better understanding of their key features. One of these systems includes the type A receptor for the gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA), which forms an integral anion channel from a pentameric subunit assembly and mediates most of the fast inhibitory neurotransmission in the adult vertebrate central nervous system. Up to now, depending on the definition, 16-19 mammalian subunits have been cloned and localized on different genes. Their assembly into proteins in a poorly defined stoichiometry forms the basis of functional and pharmacological GABA(A) receptor diversity, i.e. the receptor subtypes. The latter has been well documented in autoradiographic studies using ligands that label some of the receptors' various binding sites, corroborated by recombinant expression studies using the same tools. Significantly less heterogeneity has been found at the physiological level in native receptors, where the subunit combinations have been difficult to dissect. This review focuses on the characteristics, use and usefulness of various ligands and their binding sites to probe GABA(A) receptor properties and to gain insight into the biological function from fish to man and into evolutionary conserved GABA(A) receptor heterogeneity. We also summarize the properties of the novel mouse models created for the study of various brain functions and review the state-of-the-art imaging of brain GABA(A) receptors in various human neuropsychiatric conditions. The data indicate that the present ligands are only partly satisfactory tools and further ligands with subtype-selective properties are needed for imaging purposes and for confirming the behavioral and functional results of the studies presently carried out in gene-targeted mice with other species, including man.

Low brain histamine content affects ethanol-induced motor impairment

The effect of ethanol on motor performance in humans is well established but how neural mechanisms are affected by ethanol action remains largely unknown. To investigate whether the brain histaminergic system is important in it, we used a genetic model consisting of rat lines selectively outbred for differential ethanol sensitivity. Ethanol-sensitive rats had lower levels of brain histamine and lower densities of histamine-immunoreactive fibers than ethanol-insensitive rats, although both rat lines showed no changes in histamine synthesizing neurons. Lowering the high brain histamine content of the ethanol-insensitive rats with alpha-fluoromethylhistidine before ethanol administration increased their ethanol sensitivity in a behavioral motor function test. Higher H3 receptor ligand binding and histamine-induced G-protein activation was detected in several brain regions of ethanol-naive ethanol-sensitive rats. Brain histamine levels and possibly signaling via H3 receptors may thus correlate with genetic differences in ethanol-induced motor impairment.

Increased behavioral neurosteroid sensitivity in a rat line selectively bred for high alcohol sensitivity

Acute administration of a neurosteroid 5beta-pregnan-3alpha-ol-20-one induced a greater impairment in motor performance of the selectively bred alcohol-sensitive (ANT) than alcohol-insensitive (AT) rats. This difference was not associated with the sensitivity of gamma-aminobutyrate type A (GABA(A)) receptors, as 5alpha-pregnan-3alpha-ol-20-one (allopregnanolone) decreased the autoradiographic signals of t-butylbicyclophosphoro[35S]thionate binding to GABA(A) receptor-associated ionophores more in the brain sections of AT than ANT rats. Nor was the difference associated with baseline levels of neuroactive progesterone metabolites, as 5alpha-pregnan-3,20-dione (5alpha-DHP) and 5alpha-pregnan-3alpha-ol-20-one were lower in the ANT rats. After ethanol (2 g/kg, i.p.) administration and the subsequent motor performance test, the increased brain concentrations of these metabolites were still lower in the ANT than AT rats, although especially in the cerebellum the relative increases were greater in the ANT than AT rats. The present data suggest that the mechanisms mediating neurosteroid-induced motor impairment are susceptible to genetic variation in rat lines selected for differences in ethanol intoxication.

Effects of a novel uncompetitive NMDA receptor antagonist, MRZ 2/579 on ethanol self-administration and ethanol withdrawal seizures in the rat

It has been repeatedly reported that NMDA receptors may contribute to ethanol-induced discriminative stimulus effects and withdrawal syndrome. However, the role of NMDA receptors in the reinforcing properties of ethanol remains unclear. The aim of the present study was to evaluate effects of the novel low-affinity, uncompetitive NMDA receptor antagonist, 1-amino-1,3,3,5,5-pentamethyl-cyclohexane hydrochloride (MRZ 2/579), on ethanol self-administration and ethanol withdrawal-associated seizures in rats. Both an operant (lever pressing for ethanol) and non-operant two-bottle choice setups were employed to initiate ethanol self-administration. In another procedure, forced treatment with high doses (9--15 g/kg/day) was used to induce physical dependence on ethanol. MRZ 2/579 delivered chronically by osmotic minipumps (9.6 mg/day, s.c.) did not alter either operant or non-operant ethanol drinking behaviour in a maintenance phase of ethanol self-administration. In contrast, repeated daily injections of the drug (5 mg/kg, i.p.) led to a progressive decrease in operant responding for ethanol. MRZ 2/579 (0.5--7.5 mg/kg, i.p.) and another low-affinity NMDA receptor antagonist, memantine (1--10 mg/kg, i.p.) dose-dependently suppressed ethanol withdrawal seizures with efficacies comparable with that of a standard benzodiazepine derivative, diazepam. The results of the present study indicate that: (i) intermittent administration of MRZ 2/579 may lead to a gradual decrease of operant responding for ethanol; and (ii) the group of low-affinity uncompetitive NMDA receptor antagonists may be an interesting alternative to benzodiazepines in the treatment of alcohol withdrawal.

Enhanced locomotor stimulation by NMDA receptor antagonists in alcohol-sensitive ANT rats

The ability of the antagonists for the N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) type of glutamate receptor to modulate locomotor activity were compared in alcohol-sensitive (or alcohol-nontolerant, ANT) and alcohol-insensitive (or alcohol-tolerant, AT) rat lines. Both rat lines showed altered locomotor activity after acute injections of a competitive antagonist (LY235959), a glycine-site antagonist (L-701,324), or noncompetitive antagonists [MK-801, phencyclidine (PCP), and ketamine] of the NMDA receptor. MK-801 at 0.5 mg/kg caused a strong increase in horizontal activity in both rat lines, the effect being significantly greater in the ANT rats. There was a subpopulation among AT rats that was almost completely unresponsive to MK-801. This insensitivity to MK-801 correlated with the lack of c-fos induction in the retrosplenial and cingulate cortices. Fos immunoreactive cells in these brain regions after MK-801 treatment were more numerous in ANT than AT rats, although c-fos induction in the inferior olivary nucleus was similar in all animals after MK-801. The ANT rats showed greater locomotor stimulation also after ketamine and LY235959, while stimulation induced by PCP and depression induced by L-701,324 did not differ between the rat lines. The data suggest that altered NMDA receptor-mediated processes may correlate with differences in innate alcohol sensitivity in the ANT/AT rat model.

Discriminative stimulus properties of ethanol in rats: studies on the role of nitric oxide

The present study examined the role of the L-arginine-nitric oxide pathway in mediation of the ethanol interoceptive (discriminative) cue. Adult male Wistar rats (n = 16) were trained to discriminate ethanol (1 g/kg, 10% v/v) from saline under a fixed-ratio 10 (FR10) schedule of sweetened milk reinforcement. A nonselective nitric oxide synthase (NOS) inhibitor, N(G)-nitro-L-arginine methyl ester (L-NAME; 10-540 mg/kg) did not substitute for ethanol. Similarly, a relatively selective neuronal NOS inhibitor, 7-nitroindazole (7-NI; 10-80 mg/kg), did not mimic the ethanol cue. However, both L-NAME and 7-NI produced significant reduction in the rate of operant responding. A nitric oxide precursor, L-arginine (100-500 mg/kg) neither substituted for nor antagonize the ethanol stimulus. Taken together, these results suggest that the L-arginine-nitric oxide pathway is not involved in mediation of the discriminative stimulus effects of ethanol in the rat.

Ethanol and neurotransmitter interactions--from molecular to integrative effects

There is extensive evidence that ethanol interacts with a variety of neurotransmitters. Considerable research indicates that the major actions of ethanol involve enhancement of the effects of gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) at GABAA receptors and blockade of the NMDA subtype of excitatory amino acid (EAA) receptor. Ethanol increases GABAA receptor-mediated inhibition, but this does not occur in all brain regions, all cell types in the same region, nor at all GABAA receptor sites on the same neuron, nor across species in the same brain region. The molecular basis for the selectivity of the action of ethanol on GaBAA receptors has been proposed to involve a combination of benzodiazepine subtype, beta 2 subunit, and a splice variant of the gamma 2 subunit, but substantial controversy on this issue currently remains. Chronic ethanol administration results in tolerance, dependence, and an ethanol withdrawal (ETX) syndrome, which are mediated, in part, by desensitization and/or down-regulation of GABAA receptors. This decrease in ethanol action may involve changes in subunit expression in selected brain areas, but these data are complex and somewhat contradictory at present. The sensitivity of NMDA receptors to ethanol block is proposed to involve the NMDAR2B subunit in certain brain regions, but this subunit does not appear to be the sole determinant of this interaction. Tolerance to ethanol results in enhanced EAA neurotransmission and NMDA receptor upregulation, which appears to involve selective increases in NMDAR2B subunit levels and other molecular changes in specific brain loci. During ETX a variety of symptoms are seen, including susceptibility to seizures. In rodents these seizures are readily triggered by sound (audiogenic seizures). The neuronal network required for these seizures is contained primarily in certain brain stem structures. Specific nuclei appear to play a hierarchical role in generating each stereotypical behavioral phases of the convulsion. Thus, the inferior colliculus acts to initiate these seizures, and a decrease in effectiveness of GABA-mediated inhibition in these neurons is a major initiation mechanism. The deep layers of superior colliculus are implicated in generation of the wild running behavior. The pontine reticular formation, substantia nigra and periaqueductal gray are implicated in generation of the tonic-clonic seizure behavior. The mechanisms involved in the recruitment of neurons within each network nucleus into the seizure circuit have been proposed to require activation of a critical mass of neurons. Achievement of critical mass may involve excess EAA-mediated synaptic neurotransmission due, in part, to upregulation as well as other phenomena, including volume (non-synaptic diffusion) neurotransmission. Effects of ETX on receptors observed in vitro may undergo amplification in vivo to allow the excess EAA action to be magnified sufficiently to produce synchronization of neuronal firing, allowing participation of the nucleus in seizure generation. GABA-mediated inhibition, which normally acts to limit excitation, is diminished in effectiveness during ETX, and further intensifies this excitation.