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Effects of Chronic Ethanol Treatment on Neocortex
Author(s) -
Ruttedge Lester T.,
Sutter Mark A.,
Chi Shulng,
Gray Todd A.
Publication year - 1986
Publication title -
alcoholism: clinical and experimental research
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.267
H-Index - 153
eISSN - 1530-0277
pISSN - 0145-6008
DOI - 10.1111/j.1530-0277.1986.tb05133.x
Subject(s) - neocortex , ethanol , psychology , neuroscience , chemistry , biochemistry
Neocortical inhibition and neuronal morphology were studied in rats following chronic ethanol treatment (CET). In terminal acute experiments, spontaneous neuronal discharges in pair‐fed and naive rats were inhibited by epieortical stimulation, a procedure known to produce postsynaptic inhibition. Few units in CET rats were inhibited by such stimulation. Cortical recurrent inhibition, indicated by a surface‐negative potential in response to antidromic stimulation of the cerebral peduncle, was little affected by a challenge dose of ethanol, compared with the response in pair‐fed animals. Recurrent inhibition involves inhibitory intemeurons. CET apparently made inhibitory intemeurons and inhibitory postsynaptic receptors less responsive to ethanol. Apical dendritic spines on some portions of pyramidal neurons increased in number with CET. This could reflect a compensatory growth in neurons not damaged by CET. The overall observations are consistent with ethanol affecting one or more specific systems of cortical motor control as opposed to its presumed general disinhibitory effect.