Neonatal cerebellectomy alters ethanol-induced sleep time of short sleep but not long sleep mice.

The effects of neonatal cerebellectomy on ethanol-induced sleep times in long sleep (LS) and short sleep (SS) mice were investigated. Cerebellectomy did not alter the ethanol sensitivity of LS animals for loss of righting reflex. In contrast, SS mice became more sensitive to alcohol after cerebellectomy. Even so, large differences were still observed between the alcohol-induced sleep times of cerebellectomized LS and SS mice. The data indicate that, while the cerebellum must have a prominant influence on alcohol sleep time in SS animals, this brain structure is not solely responsible for the observed differences in righting reflex sensitivity to ethanol in these two mouse lines. We postulate the existence of noncerebellar central neurons with differential sensitivities to the depressant effects of ethanol in LS and SS mice.