Chronic benzodiazepine administration facilitates the subsequent development of ethanol dependence

MARTIJENA I.D, LACERRA C, BUSTOS S.G, MOLINA V.A

ELSEVIER SCIENCE BV

Año: 2001 p. 236 - 236

b> Abstract This study investigated the effect of chronic benzodiazepine (BZD) administration and its abrupt discontinuation on later subsequent ethanol consumption employing a free choice paradigm between water and increasing ethanol concentrations. In addition, we also studied the anxiolytic and reinforcing properties of ethanol assessed in the elevated plus maze (EPM) and in the conditioned place preference paradigm, respectively. Adult male Wistar rats were subjected to a chronic diazepam (DZM) treatment (2 mg/kg/ day, i.p.) during 21 days. Twenty-four hours after that treatment and, in another experiment, 10 days after the last DZM injection, rats were subjected to an oral