Paternal alcohol consumption: effects of age of testing and duration of paternal drinking in mice.

Male mice consumed liquid alcohol diets containing 25, 20, 15, 10, 5, or 0% ethanol-derived calories (EDC). Animals receiving the 20-0% EDC diets were pair-fed to those consuming the 25% EDC diet. After 7 weeks of consumption males were bred to nontreated females. Offspring were tested for activity at 16-20 and 75 days of age. Offspring sired by alcohol-consuming males did not differ from controls in litter size, birth weight, or weight at weaning, but were less active than controls on several measures of activity. Many of these decreases were best defined in terms of linear trends. However, these differences were evident only for animals tested prior to 20 days of age for most activity measures. In a second experiment adult males continued to consume alcohol for another 7 weeks and were bred again. Offspring of this second breeding were tested for activity at 16 days of age and were compared with offspring sired by the same father from the previous breeding. Offspring sired after this longer duration of paternal alcohol consumption did not differ significantly from controls in any of the above-mentioned variables.