Abstract
Background
Corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF) signaling at the CRF1 receptor (CRF1R) in the ventral tegmental area (VTA) can modulate ethanol consumption in rodents.
However, the effects of binge-like ethanol drinking on this system have not been thoroughly
characterized, and little is known about the role of CRF2R or the CRF neurocircuitry involved.
Methods
The effects of binge-like ethanol consumption on the VTA CRF system were assessed
following drinking-in-the-dark procedures. Intra-VTA infusions of selective CRF1R and/or CRF2R compounds were employed to assess the contributions of these receptors in modulating
binge-like ethanol consumption (n = 89). To determine the potential role of CRF projections from the bed nucleus of
the stria terminalis (BNST) to the VTA, CRF neurons in this circuit were chemogenetically
inhibited (n = 32). Binge-induced changes in VTA CRF system protein and messenger RNA were also
assessed (n = 58).
Results
Intra-VTA antagonism of CRF1R and activation of CRF2R resulted in decreased ethanol intake, which was eliminated by simultaneous blockade
of both receptors. Chemogenetic inhibition of local CRF neurons in the VTA did not
alter binge-like ethanol drinking, but inhibition of VTA-projecting CRF neurons from
the BNST significantly reduced intake.
Conclusions
We provide novel evidence that 1) blunted binge-like ethanol consumption stemming
from CRF1R blockade requires intact CRF2R signaling, and CRF2R activation reduces binge-like drinking; 2) inhibiting VTA-projecting BNST CRF neurons
attenuates binge-like drinking; and 3) binge-like ethanol drinking alters protein
and messenger RNA associated with the VTA-CRF system. These data suggest that ethanol-induced
activation of BNST-to-VTA CRF projections is critical in driving binge-like ethanol
intake.
Keywords
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Article info
Publication history
Published online: March 03, 2016
Accepted:
February 22,
2016
Received in revised form:
February 6,
2016
Received:
July 22,
2015
Identification
Copyright
© Society of Biological Psychiatry, 2016.
ScienceDirect
Access this article on ScienceDirectLinked Article
- Bed Nucleus of the Stria Terminalis–Derived Corticotropin-Releasing Factor Controls Binge Alcohol Drinking Via Interacting With Corticotropin-Releasing Factor Receptors 1 and 2 in the Ventral Tegmental AreaBiological PsychiatryVol. 81Issue 11
- PreviewAlcohol dependence is a devastating medical and social condition that leads to crime, lost work productivity, increased health care costs, and family suffering. It affects hundreds of millions of people worldwide and imposes an enormous annual financial burden, counted into billions of U.S. dollars. Unfortunately, despite extensive efforts, our understanding of the disease is still limited; thus, means of its prevention of development and progression remain mediocre. Therefore, there is a pressing need to investigate the underpinnings of alcoholism at the molecular, cellular, and system levels in the brain.
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