Rat strain differences in ethanol self-administration and taste aversion learning.

Taste aversion learning was investigated in two inbred strains of rats known to differ in amount of ethanol (EtOH) they will self-administer orally. The "low EtOH preference" strain, WKYs, acquired an aversion to an EtOH solution during self-administration; but a "high preference" strain, M520s, did not. It was shown that a lower dose of EtOH will condition saccharin aversion in WKYs than in M520s, suggesting EtOH is a more effective US in the low preference strain. Analysis of patterns of EtOH self-administration indicates the pattern of the low preference strain is more likely to result in taste aversion learning. The implications of these results for the presumed relation between EtOH preference and other EtOH-related phenotypes is discussed.