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Background: Traumatic stress is associated with high rates of problematic alcohol use, but how the persistent effects of trauma impact sensitivity to alcohol remain unknown. This study examined the persistent effects of traumatic stress exposure on sensitivity to alcohol and underlying neurobiological mechanisms in rats., Methods: Male (N=98) and female (N=98) Long-Evans rats were exposed to the predator odor TMT, and two weeks later, molecular, neuronal, and behavioral sensitivity to alcohol were assessed. Next, rats were trained to discriminate alcohol from water (male N=70; female N=56), and the impact of TMT on interoceptive sensitivity to alcohol and the alcohol-like effects of systemic GABA A receptor activation were evaluated. Lastly, functional involvement of GABA A and NMDA receptors in the prelimbic cortex (PrL) and the anterior insular cortex (aIC) was investigated., Results: TMT exposure sex-dependently altered PrL Gabra1 , and elevated aIC Grin2b and Grin2c in males. TMT increased PrL c-Fos in males, which was attenuated by alcohol administration. Alcohol-induced locomotor and startle response effects were attenuated in the TMT group in both sexes. TMT exposure potentiated interoceptive sensitivity to alcohol in males but not in females, and this effect was driven by GABA A receptors in the PrL. Greater stress reactivity during TMT exposure was associated with higher interoceptive sensitivity to alcohol, and alcohol exposure history was linked to a heightened stress response to TMT in males., Conclusions: Traumatic stress increased interoceptive sensitivity to alcohol in males, but not females, through PrL GABA A receptor adaptations, potentially enhancing the stimulatory, and by extension the rewarding, effects of alcohol., Competing Interests: Disclosures All authors have no conflicts of interest to disclose.

Rationale: The subjective effects of alcohol are associated with alcohol use disorder (AUD) vulnerability and treatment outcomes. The interoceptive effects of alcohol are part of these subjective effects and can be measured in animal models using drug discrimination procedures. The newly developed mGlu 2 and mGlu 3 negative allosteric modulators (NAMs) are potential therapeutics for AUD and may alter interoceptive sensitivity to alcohol., Objectives: To determine the effects of mGlu 2 and mGlu 3 NAMs on the interoceptive effects of alcohol in rats., Methods: Long-Evans rats were trained to discriminate the interoceptive stimulus effects of alcohol (2.0 g/kg, i.g.) from water using both operant (males only) and Pavlovian (male and female) drug discrimination techniques. Following acquisition training, an alcohol dose-response (0, 0.5, 1.0, 2.0 g/kg) experiment was conducted to confirm stimulus control over behavior. Next, to test the involvement of mGlu 2 and mGlu 3 , rats were pretreated with the mGlu 2 -NAM (VU6001966; 0, 3, 6, 12 mg/kg, i.p.) or the mGlu 3 -NAM (VU6010572; 0, 3, 6, 12 mg/kg, i.p.) before alcohol administration (2.0 g/kg, i.g.)., Results: In Pavlovian discrimination, male rats showed greater interoceptive sensitivity to 1.0 and 2.0 g/kg alcohol compared to female rats. Both mGlu 2 -NAM and mGlu 3 -NAM attenuated the interoceptive effects of alcohol in male and female rats using Pavlovian and operant discrimination. There may be a potential sex difference in response to the mGlu 2 -NAM at the highest dose tested., Conclusions: Male rats may be more sensitive to the interoceptive effects of the 2.0 g/kg alcohol training dose compared to female rats. Both mGlu 2 - and mGlu 3 - NAM attenuate the interoceptive effects of alcohol in male and female rats. These drugs may have potential for treatment of AUD in part by blunting the subjective effects of alcohol., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest None., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Alcohol use disorders (AUDs) impose an enormous societal and financial burden, and world-wide, alcohol misuse is the 7 th leading cause of premature death 1 . Despite this, there are currently only 3 FDA approved pharmacological treatments for the treatment of AUDs in the United States. The neurotensin (Nts) system has long been implicated in modulating behaviors associated with alcohol misuse. Recently, a novel compound, SBI-553, that biases the action of Nts receptor 1 (NTSR1) activation, has shown promise in preclinical models of psychostimulant misuse. Here we investigate the efficacy of this compound to alter ethanol-mediated behaviors in a comprehensive battery of experiments assessing ethanol consumption, behavioral responses to ethanol, sensitivity to ethanol, and ethanol metabolism. Additionally, we investigated behavior in avoidance and cognitive assays to monitor potential side effects of SBI-553. We find that SBI-553 reduces binge-like ethanol consumption in mice without altering avoidance behavior or novel object recognition. We also observe sex-dependent differences in physiological responses to sequential ethanol injections in mice. In rats, we show that SBI-553 attenuates sensitivity to the interoceptive effects of ethanol (using a Pavlovian drug discrimination task). Our data suggest that targeting NTSR1 signaling may be promising to attenuate alcohol misuse, and adds to a body of literature that suggests NTSR1 may be a common downstream target involved in the psychoactive effects of multiple reinforcing substances., Competing Interests: Conflict of interest disclosure ZAM is subcontracted by Epicypher on a project unrelated to this work DA057749. The other authors have nothing to disclose. US Patents 9,868,707 and 10,118,902 related to the chemistry of SBI-553 and its derivatives have been issued to the Sanford Burnham Prebys Medical Research Institute and Duke University (MRJ, LSB).

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and alcohol use disorder (AUD) are highly comorbid and individual differences in response to stress suggest resilient and susceptible populations. Using animal models to target neurobiological mechanisms associated with individual variability in stress coping responses and the relationship with subsequent increases in alcohol consumption has important implications for the field of traumatic stress and alcohol disorders. The current review discusses the unique advantages of utilizing predator odor stressor exposure models, specifically using 2,5-dihydro-2,4,5-trimethylthiazoline (TMT) on better understanding PTSD pathophysiology and neurobiological mechanisms associated with stress reactivity and subsequent increases in alcohol drinking. Furthermore, there has been increasing interest regarding the role of the endocannabinoid system in modulating behavioral responses to stress with an emphasis on stress coping and individual differences in stress-susceptibility. Therefore, the current review focuses on the topic of endocannabinoid modulation of stress reactive behaviors during and after exposure to a predator odor stressor, with implications on modulating distinctly different behavioral coping strategies., Competing Interests: The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (© 2024 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc.)

Prenatal exposure to alcohol or cannabinoids can produce enduring neurobiological, cognitive, and behavioral changes in the offspring. Furthermore, prenatal co-exposure to alcohol and cannabinoids induces malformations in brain regions associated with reward and stress-related circuitry. This study examined the effects of co-exposure to alcohol and the synthetic cannabinoid (SCB) CP55,940 throughout gastrulation and neurulation in rats on basal corticosterone levels and a battery of behavioral tests during adolescence and alcohol self-administration in adulthood. Importantly, we find that prenatal alcohol exposure (PAE) caused lower baseline corticosterone levels in adolescent males and females. Co-exposure to alcohol + CP produced hyperactivity during open field test in males, but not females. During the two-bottle choice alcohol-drinking procedure, prenatal cannabinoid exposed male and female adolescent rats drank more alcohol than their vehicle-exposed controls. In adulthood, female rats treated with prenatal cannabinoid exposure (PCE), showed an overall total increase in alcohol intake during alcohol self-administration; but this was not found in males. When the reinforcer was changed to a 1% sucrose solution, male rats exposed to PCE, showed a reduced self-administration compared to vehicle-exposed males, potentially indicative of an anhedonic response. This lower self-administration persisted when 20% alcohol was reintroduced to the sucrose solution. Lastly, following an abstinence period, there were no changes due to prenatal drug exposure in either males or females. Overall, these data suggest lasting consequences of prenatal alcohol and cannabinoid exposure during adolescence and adulthood in male and female rats., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Animal models utilizing predator odor stress are important in understanding implications for post-traumatic stress disorder. 2,5-dihydro-2,4,5-trimethylthiazoline (TMT) has been used to measure stress reactive behaviors during TMT exposure, indicative of stress coping behaviors. In addition, long-term consequences of stress including contextual-induced stress memory, anxiety-like and hyperarousal behaviors, and subsequent increases in alcohol self-administration can also be examined after TMT exposure. In this article, we describe the TMT exposure protocol used in our lab and how we measure different stress-reactive behaviors that rats engage in during the TMT exposure. Rats are placed in Plexiglass chambers that contain white bedding on the bottom of the chamber and a metal basket in the top right corner containing a filter paper that 10 µl of TMT is pipetted onto. During the 10 min exposure, rats can move around the chamber freely. Exposures are recorded by a video camera for later analysis. During TMT exposure, rats engage in a variety of stress-reactive behaviors, including digging and immobility behavior. These are two distinctly different types of stress-induced behavioral coping strategies to measure individual differences in stress responsivity. To examine individual differences, we group rats into TMT-subgroups based on time spent engaging in digging or immobility behavior. We calculate a digging/immobility ratio score in which we divide the total time spent digging by the total time spent immobile. A cut-off strategy is used such that rats with a criterion ratio score <1.0 are classified as TMT-1 (i.e., low digging/high immobility; greater passive coping) and rats with a ratio score >1.0 are classified as TMT-2 (i.e., high digging/low immobility; greater active coping). Here, we provide a detailed description of the TMT exposure protocol and step-by-step process in evaluation of stress-reactive behaviors. © 2024 Wiley Periodicals LLC. Basic Protocol 1: Predator odor stressor exposure using TMT Basic Protocol 2: Description of stress-reactive behaviors during TMT exposure and formation of TMT-subgroups., (© 2024 Wiley Periodicals LLC.)

Prenatal exposure to alcohol or cannabinoids can produce enduring neurobiological, cognitive, and behavioral changes in the offspring. Furthermore, prenatal co-exposure to alcohol and cannabinoids induces malformations in brain regions associated with reward and stress-related circuitry. This study examined the effects of co-exposure to alcohol and the synthetic cannabinoid (SCB) CP55,940 throughout gastrulation and neurulation in rats on basal corticosterone levels and a battery of behavioral tests during adolescence and alcohol self-administration in adulthood. Importantly, we find that prenatal alcohol exposure (PAE) caused lower baseline corticosterone levels in adolescent males and females. Co-exposure to alcohol + CP produced hyperactivity during open field test in males, but not females. During the two-bottle choice alcohol-drinking procedure, prenatal cannabinoid exposed male and female adolescent rats drank more alcohol than their vehicle-exposed controls. In adulthood, female rats treated with prenatal cannabinoid exposure (PCE), showed an overall total increase in alcohol intake during alcohol self-administration; but this was not found in males. When the reinforcer was changed to a 1% sucrose solution, male rats exposed to PCE, showed a reduced self-administration compared to vehicle-exposed males, potentially indicative of an anhedonic response. This lower self-administration persisted when 20% alcohol was reintroduced to the sucrose solution. Lastly, following an abstinence period, there were no changes due to prenatal drug exposure in either males or females. Overall, these data suggest lasting consequences of prenatal alcohol and cannabinoid exposure during adolescence and adulthood in male and female rats.

There is much interest in identifying novel pharmacotherapeutic targets that improve clinical outcomes for the treatment of alcohol use disorder (AUD). One promising target for therapeutic intervention is the relaxin family peptide 3 (RXFP3) receptor, a cognate receptor for neuropeptide relaxin-3, which has previously been implicated in regulating alcohol drinking behavior. Recently, we developed the first small-molecule RXFP3-selective negative allosteric modulator (NAM) RLX-33. Therefore, the goal of the present work was to characterize the impact of this novel NAM on affective-related behaviors and alcohol self-administration in rats. First, the effects of RLX-33 were tested on alcohol and sucrose self-administration in Wistar and alcohol-preferring P rats to determine the dose-response profile and specificity for alcohol. Then, we assessed the effects of systemic RLX-33 injection in Wistar rats in a battery of behavioral assays (open-field test, elevated zero maze, acoustic startle response test, and prepulse inhibition) and tested for alcohol clearance. We found that the lowest effective dose (5 mg/kg) reduced alcohol self-administration in both male and female Wistar rats, while in alcohol-preferring P rats, this effect was restricted to males, and there were no effects on sucrose self-administration or general locomotor activity. The characterization of affective and metabolic effects in Wistar rats generally found few locomotor, affective, or alcohol clearance changes, particularly at the 5 mg/kg dose. Overall, these findings are promising and suggest that RXFP3 NAM has potential as a pharmacological target for treating AUD., (© 2023 International Society for Neurochemistry.)

The neurosteroid 3α,5α-THP is a potent GABA A receptor-positive modulator and its regulatory action on the HPA axis stress response has been reported in numerous preclinical and clinical studies. We previously demonstrated that 3α,5α-THP down-regulation of HPA axis activity during stress is sex-, brain region- and stressor-dependent. In this study, we observed a deleterious submersion behavior in response to 3α,5α-THP (15 mg/kg) during forced swim stress (FSS) that led us to investigate how 3α,5α-THP might affect behavioral coping strategies engaged in by the animal. Given the well-established involvement of the opioid system in HPA axis activation and its interaction with GABAergic neurosteroids, we explored the synergic effects of 3α,5α-THP/opiate system activation in this behavior. Serum β-endorphin (β-EP) was elevated by FSS and enhanced by 3α,5α-THP + FSS. Hypothalamic Mu-opiate receptors (MOP) were increased in female rats by 3α,5α-THP + FSS. Pretreatment with the MOP antagonist D-Phe-Cys-Tyr-D-Trp-Arg-Thr-Pen-Thr-NH2 (CTAP; 2 mg/kg, IP) reversed submersion behavior in males. Moreover, in both males and females, CTAP pretreatment decreased immobility episodes while increasing immobility duration but did not alter swimming duration. This interaction between 3α,5α-THP and the opioid system in the context of FSS might be important in the development of treatment for neuropsychiatric disorders involving HPA axis activation.

Background: Alcohol affects multiple circuits in the brain, mainly disrupting the delicate balance between inhibitory γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA) transmission and excitatory glutamate signaling in brain areas involved in reward circuits. These include the amygdala, nucleus accumbens (Acb), and ventral tegmental area (VTA). This action impairs circuits that regulate behavioral control of craving and alcohol seeking and intake. Studies in both rodent models and postmortem human brain of patients with alcohol use disorder (AUD) have highlighted the association between the loss of GABAergic inhibition and the development of addiction. The neurosteroid (3α,5α)-3-hydroxypregnan-20-one (3α,5α-THP) is a potent positive modulator of GABA A receptors. Chronic alcohol consumption reduces 3α,5α-THP levels, resulting in decreased GABA inhibition. We previously demonstrated that enhancing neurosteroid biosynthesis by overexpression of the cholesterol side-chain cleavage enzyme P450scc decreased alcohol intake in male alcohol-preferring rats (P-rats). While most of the evidence of alcohol-induced alterations comes from studies in male subjects, some data show that females are more vulnerable to alcohol's effects than males., Methods: In this study, we investigated the ability of 3α,5α-THP direct infusions in two brain regions that contribute to alcohol reinforcement, the VTA and Acb core (AcbC), to regulate alcohol self-administration in female P-rats., Results: Administration of 3α,5α-THP into the AcbC increased 3α,5α-THP-positive cell expression in this area and reduced alcohol self-administration. By contrast, 3α,5α-THP infusion into the VTA did not significantly affect alcohol self-administration, though trends for a reduction were found., Conclusions: Our results show that local increases in 3α,5α-THP in the AcbC may alter mesolimbic activity that drives a reduction in alcohol self-administration., (© 2023 Research Society on Alcohol.)

There are many unanswered questions about the interaction between the immune system and behavior change, including the contributions of individual differences. The present study modeled individual differences in the immune system by comparing inbred Lewis rats, which have dysregulated stress and immune systems, to their genetically diverse parent strain, Wistar rats. The objective was to examine the consequences of an immune challenge on behavior and neuroimmune signaling in both strains. Peripheral administration of the toll-like receptor 3 (TLR3) agonist and viral memetic polyinosinic-polycytidylic acid (poly(I:C)) induced behavior changes in both strains, reducing locomotor activity and increasing avoidance behavior (time on the dark side of the light-dark box). Furthermore, poly(I:C) induced hyperarousal and increased avoidance behavior more in female Lewis than female Wistar rats. Baseline strain differences were also observed: Lewis rats had higher avoidance behavior and lower startle response than Wistars. Lewis rats also had lower levels of peripheral inflammation, as measured by spleen weight. Finally, poly(I:C) increased expression of genes in the TLR3 pathway, cytokine genes, and CD11b, a gene associated with proinflammatory actions of microglia, in the prelimbic cortex and central amygdala, with greater expression of cytokine genes in male rats. Lewis rats had lower baseline expression of some neuroimmune genes, particularly CD11b. Overall, we found constitutive strain differences in immune profiles and baseline differences in behavior, yet poly(I:C) generally induced similar behavior changes in males while hyperarousal and avoidance behavior were heightened in female Lewis rats., (Copyright © 2022 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) confers enhanced vulnerability to developing comorbid alcohol use disorder (AUD). Exposure to the scent of a predator, such as the fox odor TMT, has been used to model a traumatic stressor with relevance to PTSD symptomatology. Alcohol produces distinct interoceptive (subjective) effects that may influence vulnerability to problem drinking and AUD. As such, understanding the lasting impact of stressors on sensitivity to the interoceptive effects of alcohol is clinically relevant. The present study used a 2-lever, operant drug discrimination procedure to train male Long-Evans rats to discriminate the interoceptive effects of alcohol (2 g/kg, i.g. [intragastrically]) from water. Upon stable performance, rats underwent a 15-min exposure to TMT. Two weeks later, an alcohol dose-response curve was conducted to evaluate the lasting effects of the TMT stressor on the interoceptive effects of alcohol. The TMT group showed a leftward shift in the effective dose (ED 50 ) of the dose-response curve compared to controls, reflecting potentiated interoceptive sensitivity to alcohol. TMT exposure did not affect response rate. GABAergic signaling in both the anterior insular cortex (aIC) and the nucleus accumbens (Acb) is involved in the interoceptive effects of alcohol and stressor-induced adaptations. As such, follow-up experiments in alcohol-naïve rats examined neuronal activation (as measured by c-Fos immunoreactivity) following TMT and showed that TMT exposure increased c-Fos expression in the aIC and the nucleus accumbens core (AcbC). Two weeks after TMT exposure, Gad-1 gene expression was elevated in the aIC and Gat-1 was increased in the Acb, compared to controls. Lastly, the alcohol discrimination and alcohol-naïve groups displayed dramatic differences in stress reactive behaviors during the TMT exposure, suggesting that alcohol exposure may alter the behavioral response to predator odor. Together, these data suggest that predator odor stressor results in potentiated sensitivity to alcohol, possibly through GABAergic adaptations in the aIC and Acb, which may be relevant to understanding PTSD-AUD comorbidity., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest None., (Copyright © 2022 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Metabotropic glutamate (mGlu) receptors are promising targets for the treatment of affective disorders and alcohol use disorder (AUD). Nonspecific ligands for Group II (mGlu 2 and mGlu 3 ) mGlu receptors have demonstrated consistent therapeutic potential for affective disorders in preclinical models. Disentangling the specific roles of mGlu 2 versus mGlu 3 receptors in these effects has persisted as a major challenge, in part due to pharmacological limitations. However, the recent development of highly specific allosteric modulators for both mGlu 2 and mGlu 3 receptors have enabled straightforward and rigorous investigations into the specific function of each receptor. Here, we review recent experiments using these compounds that have demonstrated both similar and distinct receptor functions in behavioral, molecular, and electrophysiological measures associated with basal function and preclinical models of affective disorders. Studies using these selective drugs have demonstrated that mGlu 2 is the predominant receptor subclass involved in presynaptic neurotransmitter release in prefrontal cortex. By contrast, the activation of postsynaptic mGlu 3 receptors induces a cascade of cellular changes that results in AMPA receptor internalization, producing long-term depression and diminishing excitatory drive. Acute stress decreases the mGlu 3 receptor function and dynamically alters transcript expression for both mGlu 2 (Grm2) and mGlu 3 (Grm3) receptors in brain areas involved in reward and stress. Accordingly, both mGlu 2 and mGlu 3 negative allosteric modulators show acute antidepressant-like effects and potential prophylactic effects against acute and traumatic stressors. The wide array of effects displayed by these new allosteric modulators of mGlu 2 and mGlu 3 receptors suggest that these drugs may act through improving endophenotypes of symptoms observed across several neuropsychiatric disorders. Therefore, recently developed allosteric modulators selective for mGlu 2 or mGlu 3 receptors show promise as potential therapeutics for affective disorders and AUD., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare no potential conflicts of interest., (Copyright © 2022 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF) regulates the stress response in the hypothalamus and modulates neurotransmission across the brain through CRF receptors. Acute stress increases hypothalamic CRF and the GABAergic neurosteroid (3α,5α)3-hydroxypregnan-20-one (3α,5α-THP). We previously showed that 3α,5α-THP regulation of CRF is sex and brain region dependent. In this study, we investigated 3α,5α-THP regulation of stress-induced hypothalamic CRF, CRF receptor type 1 (CRFR1), CRF binding protein (CRFBP), pro-opiomelanocortin (POMC), and glucocorticoid receptor (GR) by western blot and circulating corticosterone (CORT) by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) in male and female Sprague Dawley rats. Tissue was collected after rats were injected with 3α,5α-THP (15 mg/kg, IP) or vehicle 15 min prior to 30 min of restraint stress (RS), or 10 min of forced swim stress (FSS) and 20 min recovery. The initial exposure to a stress stimulus increased circulating CORT levels in both males and females, but 3α,5α-THP attenuated the CORT response only in females after RS. 3α,5α-THP reduced GR levels in male and females, but differently between stressors. 3α,5α-THP decreased the CRF stress response after FSS in males and females, but after RS, only in female rats. 3α,5α-THP reduced the CRFR1, CRFBP, and POMC increases after RS and FSS in males, but in females only after FSS. Our results showed different stress responses following different types of stressors: 3α,5α-THP regulated the HPA axis at different levels, depending on sex.

The neuropeptide relaxin-3/RXFP3 system is involved in many important physiological processes such as stress responses, appetite control, and motivation for reward. To date, pharmacological studies of RXFP3 have been limited to peptide ligands. In this study, we report the discovery of the first small-molecule antagonists of RXFP3 through a high-throughput screening campaign. Focused structure-activity relationship studies of the hit compound resulted in RLX-33 ( 33 ) that was able to inhibit relaxin-3 activity in a battery of functional assays. RLX-33 is selective for RXFP3 over RXFP1 and RXFP4, two related members in the relaxin/insulin superfamily, and has favorable pharmacokinetic properties for behavioral assessment. When administered to rats intraperitoneally, RLX-33 blocked food intake induced by the RXFP3-selective agonist R3/I5. Collectively, our findings demonstrated that RLX-33 represents a promising antagonist scaffold for the development of drugs targeting the relaxin-3/RXFP3 system.

Toll-like receptor (TLR) signaling may play an important role in the neuroimmune system's involvement in the development and maintenance of alcohol use disorder (AUD). In the present study we administered the TLR3 agonist poly(I:C) in male and female Long-Evans rats to determine whether TLR3 agonism can increase alcohol consumption on a daily 15% alcohol operant self-administration paradigm. We found few effects when poly(I:C) was given every-other-day at 0.3 or 1.0 mg/kg. However, when 1.0 mg/kg was given on consecutive days, alcohol intake increased in the days following injections specifically in females. In a second experiment, we found that this effect only emerged when rats had a history of multiple poly(I:C) injections. In the final experiment the poly(I:C) dose was increased to 3.0 mg/kg on consecutive days which resulted in significant reductions in alcohol intake on injection days in females that were not accompanied by subsequent increases. The poly(I:C) dose was increased to 9.0 mg/kg for one final pair of injections which led to reductions in intake in both males and females followed by a male specific delayed increase in alcohol intake. Overall, repeated poly(I:C) administration was able to increase subsequent alcohol consumption in both sexes, with females showing an increase at a lower dose than males. These findings support TLR3 agonism in contributing to increased alcohol consumption and add to the body of work identifying the neuroimmune system as a potential therapeutic target for AUD., (Copyright © 2022 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

There is growing evidence that immune signalling may be involved in both the causes and consequences of alcohol abuse. Toll-like receptor (TLR) expression is increased by alcohol consumption and is implicated in AUD, and specifically TLR7 may play an important role in ethanol consumption. We administered the TLR7-specific agonist imiquimod in male and female Long-Evans rats to determine (1) gene expression changes in brain regions involved in alcohol reinforcement, the nucleus accumbens core and anterior insular cortex, in rats with and without an alcohol history, and (2) whether TLR7 activation could modulate operant alcohol self-administration. Interferon regulatory factor 7 (IRF7) was dramatically increased in both sexes at both 2- and 24-h post-injection regardless of alcohol history and TLR3 and 7 gene expression was increased as well. The proinflammatory cytokine TNFα was increased 24-h post-injection in rats with an alcohol self-administration history, but this effect did not persist after four injections, suggesting molecular tolerance. Ethanol consumption was increased 24 h after imiquimod injections but did not occur until the third injection, suggesting adaptation to repeated TLR7 activation is necessary for increased drinking to occur. Notably, imiquimod reliably induced weight loss, indicating that sickness behaviour persisted across repeated injections. These findings show that TLR7 activation can modulate alcohol drinking in an operant self-administration paradigm and suggest that TLR7 and IRF7 signalling pathways may be a viable druggable target for treatment of AUD., (© 2022 The Authors. Addiction Biology published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Society for the Study of Addiction.)

A stressor can trigger lasting adaptations that contribute to neuropsychiatric disorders. Predator odor (TMT) exposure is an innate stressor that may activate the metabotropic glutamate receptor 3 (mGlu 3 ) to produce stress adaptations. To evaluate functional involvement, the mGlu 3 negative allosteric modulator (NAM, VU6010572; 3 mg/kg, i.p.) was administered before TMT exposure in male, Long Evans rats. Two weeks after, rats underwent context re-exposure, elevated zero maze (ZM), and acoustic startle (ASR) behavioral tests, followed by RT-PCR gene expression in the insular cortex and bed nucleus of the stria terminalis (BNST) to evaluate lasting behavioral and molecular adaptations from the stressor. Rats displayed stress-reactive behaviors in response to TMT exposure that were not affected by VU6010572. Freezing and hyperactivity were observed during the context re-exposure, and mGlu 3 -NAM pretreatment during stressor prevented the context freezing response. TMT exposure did not affect ZM or ASR measures, but VU6010572 increased time spent in the open arms of the ZM and ASR habituation regardless of stressor treatment. In the insular cortex, TMT exposure increased expression of mGlu (Grm3, Grm5) and NMDA (GriN2A, GriN2B, GriN2C, GriN3A, GriN3B) receptor transcripts, and mGlu 3 -NAM pretreatment blocked GriN3B upregulation. In the BNST, TMT exposure increased expression of GriN2B and GriN3B in vehicle-treated rats, but decreased expression in the mGlu 3 -NAM group. Similar to the insular cortex, mGlu 3 -NAM reversed the stressor-induced upregulation of GriN3B in the BNST. mGlu 3 -NAM also upregulated GriN2A, GriN2B, GriN3B and Grm2 in the control group, but not the TMT group. Together, these data implicate mGlu 3 receptor signaling in some lasting adaptations of predator odor stressor and anxiolytic-like effects., (Copyright © 2022 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

The endocannabinoid system is implicated in the neuronal mechanisms of alcohol use disorder (AUD), with the cannabinoid receptor subtype 1 (CB 1 ) representing a promising target for AUD therapeutic interventions. We have previously shown negative allosteric modulators (NAMs) of the CB 1 receptor attenuated the reinstatement of other drugs of abuse including cocaine and methamphetamine in rats; however, their effects on alcohol-related behaviors have not been investigated. Here, we tested the pharmacokinetic properties of one such CB 1 NAM, RTICBM-74, and its effects on alcohol self-administration in rats. RTICBM-74 showed low aqueous solubility and high protein binding but had excellent half-life and low clearance against rat liver microsomes and hepatocytes, and excellent brain penetrance in rats. RTICBM-74 pretreatment specifically reduced alcohol intake across a range of doses in male or female Wistar or Long-Evans rats that were trained to self-administer alcohol. These effects were similar to the CB 1 antagonist/inverse agonist rimonabant, which was tested as a positive control. Importantly, RTICBM-74 was effective at reducing alcohol intake at doses that did not affect locomotion or sucrose self-administration. Our findings suggest that CB 1 NAMs such as RTICBM-74 have promising therapeutic potential in treatment of AUD. SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT: The present work shows that a metabolically stable and brain-penetrant cannabinoid receptor subtype 1 negative allosteric modulator reduces alcohol self-administration in rats without affecting locomotion or sucrose self-administration, suggesting potential therapeutic relevance for the treatment of alcohol use disorder., (Copyright © 2022 by The American Society for Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics.)

Interoception refers to the perception of the internal state of the body and is increasingly being recognized as an important factor in mental health disorders. Drugs of abuse produce powerful interoceptive states that are upstream of behaviors that drive and influence drug intake, and addiction pathology is impacted by interoceptive processes. The goal of the present review is to discuss interoceptive processes related to alcohol. We will cover physiological responses to alcohol, how interoceptive states can impact drinking, and the recruitment of brain networks as informed by clinical research. We also review the molecular and brain circuitry mechanisms of alcohol interoceptive effects as informed by preclinical studies. Finally, we will discuss emerging treatments with consideration of interoception processes. As our understanding of the role of interoception in drug and alcohol use grows, we suggest that the convergence of information provided by clinical and preclinical studies will be increasingly important. Given the complexity of interoceptive processing and the multitude of brain regions involved, an overarching network-based framework can provide context for how focused manipulations modulate interoceptive processing as a whole. In turn, preclinical studies can systematically determine the roles of individual nodes and their molecular underpinnings in a given network, potentially suggesting new therapeutic targets and directions. As interoceptive processing drives and influences motivation, emotion, and subsequent behavior, consideration of interoception is important for our understanding of processes that drive ongoing drinking and relapse., (Copyright © 2021 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)