Intermittent Access to Ethanol Drinking Facilitates the Transition to Excessive Drinking After Chronic Intermittent Ethanol Vapor Exposure.

Chronic EtOH drinking at stable or escalated levels for several months is associated with more compulsive-like responding for EtOH in rats that are exposed to CIE compared with rats without a prior history of EtOH drinking. Moreover, IAE facilitated the transition to compulsive-like responding for EtOH after CIE exposure, reflected by the escalation of EtOH intake. These results suggest that IAE may facilitate the transition to AUD. This study indicates that despite a moderate level of EtOH drinking, the IAE animal model is highly relevant to early stages of alcohol abuse and suggests that it may be associated with neuroadaptations that produce a faster transition to alcohol dependence.