Alcohol preference and regional brain monoamine contents of N/Nih heterogeneous stock rats.

The N/Nih heterogeneous stock rats were tested for alcohol drinking behavior. Rats that met criteria for high (greater than 5.0 g ethanol/kg body weight/day) and low (less than 0.5 g/kg/day) alcohol consumption were chosen, and the regional brain contents of monoamine neurotransmitters were determined in these animals. The primary finding was a lower content of serotonin and 5-hydroxyindoleacetic acid in the thalamus and hypothalamus of the high alcohol preferring N/Nih rats as compared with the low preferrers. The high preferrers were also found to have a lower content of dopamine and norepinephrine in the thalamus. The findings support the hypothesis that an inverse relationship exists between the density and/or metabolic functioning of regional brain serotonin systems and alcohol preference.