Ethanol tolerance measured electrophysiologically in hippocampal slices and not in neuromuscular junctions from chronically ethanol-fed rats.

The electrophysiologically measured effects of perfused ethanol were examined in neuromuscular junctions and hippocampal slices removed concurrently from naive and ethanol-tolerant rats. At the neuromuscular junction, ethanol augmented the frequency height, and half-width of spontaneous miniature endplate potentials (Mepp). No tolerance was noted to these effects in junctions from ethanol-fed animals. Ethanol depressed the stratum radiatum evoked hippocampal CA1 population spike. Clearcut tolerance to this effect was noted in slices from chronically ethanol-fed animals.