Serotonin and alcohol intake, abuse, and dependence: Clinical evidence

LeMarquand, David; Pihl, Robert O.; Benkelfat, Chawki

doi:10.1016/0006-3223(94)90630-0

Cited by 328 publications

(181 citation statements)

References 114 publications

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“…Sertraline reduced alcohol consumption in the subjects whose customary pattern of consumption was excessive to the point of intoxication, while not affecting food intake or weight. This finding is consistent with a growing body of data showing that serotonin reuptake inhibitors reduce alcohol consumption among animals (LeMarquand et al 1994b) and among some humans who abuse alcohol (LeMarquand et al 1994a;Pettinati 1996;Tiihonen et al 1996). It is noteworthy that the reduction in alcohol consumption was limited to subjects whose pattern of consumption was high.…”

Section: J Higley Et Alsupporting

confidence: 89%

“…Preclinical studies with rodents show that the SSRIs reduce alcohol consumption (LeMarquand et al 1994b). Similarly, in a number of small scale studies, SSRIs have shown promise as an adjunct treatment for alcohol abuse and alcoholism (LeMarquand et al 1994a;Pettinati 1996). The controlled studies conducted by Gorelick (1989) and Kranzler et al (1995) showed, however, that fluoxetine was ineffective in promoting maintenance of abstinence among treatment-seeking alcoholics.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Among humans, clinical studies show evidence of reduced CNS serotonin functioning in subjects at risk for or who exhibit early onset alcohol abuse and alcoholism (for recent reviews see LeMarquand et al 1994a;Litten et al 1996;Pettinati 1996). Some recent studies show that selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) are promising as adjunctive pharmacological treatment for maintenance of abstinence (see LeMarquand et al 1994b).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

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The Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitor Sertraline Reduces Excessive Alcohol Consumption in Nonhuman Primates: Effect of Stress

Higley

Hasert²,

Suomi³

et al. 1998

Neuropsychopharmacology

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Many monkeys that are reared without adult influence, with only peers, voluntarily consume alcohol in amounts producing intoxication on a relatively regular basis. Using a cross-over design, eight adolescent, peer-reared rhesus monkeys were allowed unfettered access to an 8.4% ethanol solution and treated with 20 mg/kgA large number of preclinical studies have reported high rates of alcohol consumption among animals with reduced central nervous system (CNS) serotonin functioning (for reviews, see Sellers et al. 1992;LeMarquand et al. 1994b). Among humans, clinical studies show evidence of reduced CNS serotonin functioning in subjects at risk for or who exhibit early onset alcohol abuse and alcoholism (for recent reviews see LeMarquand et al. 1994a;Litten et al. 1996;Pettinati 1996). Some recent studies show that selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) are promising as adjunctive pharmacological treatment for maintenance of abstinence (see LeMarquand et al. 1994b). Preclinical studies with rodents show that the SSRIs reduce alcohol consumption (LeMarquand et al. 1994b). Similarly, in a number of small scale studies, SSRIs have shown promise as an adjunct treatment for alcohol abuse and alcoholism (LeMarquand et al. 1994a;Pettinati 1996). The controlled studies conducted by Gorelick (1989) and Kranzler et al. (1995) showed, however, that fluoxetine was ineffective in promoting maintenance of abstinence among treatment-seeking alcoholics. More recently, researchers used a controlled study to demonstrate that citalopram was efficacious in promoting maintenance 18 , NO . 6 of abstinence among early-onset, violent male alcoholics thought to have reduced central serotonin functioning (Tiihonen et al. 1996). Because of the conflicting reports on the efficacy of the SSRIs in the maintenance of abstinence, we decided to investigate sertraline as a potential treatment for excessive alcohol intake, using a nonhuman primate model with monkeys known to have reduced central serotonin functioning (Higley et al. 1996d,e). Furthermore, we designed the study specifically to examine the role that stress plays in excessive alcohol consumption among nonhuman primates and to test the efficacy of sertraline in mitigating the effects of stress on alcohol consumption.Until recently, it was widely believed that nonhuman primates would not voluntarily consume alcohol in appreciable quantities (e.g., Mello and Mendelson 1971;Meisch et al. 1975;Crowley et al. 1983); consequently, they were not typically used in research on alcohol abuse. More recent studies have shown, however, that for many species of primates, many (but not all) subjects will freely consume alcohol in quantities that produce pharmacological effects when an alcohol solution is palatable (Higley et al. 1991;Higley 1996;Higley and Linnoila 1997). Within some species, such as rhesus macaques and other Old World primate species, some individual subjects will routinely consume sufficient quantities of alcohol to produce blood levels exceeding the limits of legal in...

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Section: J Higley Et Alsupporting

confidence: 89%

mentioning

confidence: 99%

mentioning

confidence: 99%

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The Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitor Sertraline Reduces Excessive Alcohol Consumption in Nonhuman Primates: Effect of Stress

Higley

Hasert²,

Suomi³

et al. 1998

Neuropsychopharmacology

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“…Alcohol dependence and depression cooccur commonly in clinical populations. 265,266 Presumably, a deficit in 5-HTergic transmission is involved in the etiology and maintenance of alcoholism and 5-HT may mediate ethanol intake (for review see LeMarquand et al 267,268 ). Distinguishing the effects of long-term alcohol intake from putative premorbid 5-HT dysfunction is a problem.…”

Section: -Methylenedioxymethamphetamine (Mdma)mentioning

confidence: 99%

Serotonergic vulnerability and depression: assumptions, experimental evidence and implications

et al. 2006

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In recent years, the term serotonergic vulnerability (SV) has been used in scientific literature, but so far it has not been explicitly defined. This review article attempts to elucidate the SV concept. SV can be defined as increased sensitivity to natural or experimental alterations of the serotonergic (5-HTergic) system. Several factors that may disrupt the 5-HTergic system and hence contribute to SV are discussed, including genetic factors, female gender, personality characteristics, several types of stress and drug use. It is explained that SV can be demonstrated by means of manipulations of the 5-HTergic system, such as 5-HT challenges or acute tryptophan depletion (ATD). Results of 5-HT challenge studies and ATD studies are discussed in terms of their implications for the concept of SV. A model is proposed in which a combination of various factors that may compromise 5-HT functioning in one person can result in depression or other 5-HT-related pathology. By manipulating 5-HT levels, in particular with ATD, vulnerable subjects may be identified before pathology initiates, providing the opportunity to take preventive action. Although it is not likely that this model applies to all cases of depression, or is able to identify all vulnerable subjects, the strength of the model is that it may enable identification of vulnerable subjects before the 5-HT related pathology occurs. Molecular Psychiatry ( Keywords: serotonin; mood disorders; stress; genetics; sex; tryptophan Involvement of serotonin in depressionMood disorders are one of the most prevalent forms of mental illness. 1 According to the DSM-IV, the lifetime risk for major depressive disorder is between 10 and 25% for women and between 5 and 12% for men. 2 Depression has been studied intensively during the last few decades, but the psychological and neurobiological determinants of depression have not yet been precisely defined. Although several factors are known to contribute to the etiology of depression, it is not clear how these factors cause depression, and why some subjects become depressed while others remain unaffected. In terms of biological factors in the etiology of depression, there are several hypotheses. These include neurotransmitter dysfunctions (serotonin, 5-HT; dopamine, DA; norepinephrine, NE); dysregulations in hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis activity; and immune system imbalance. The aim of this article is not to discuss all of these hypotheses in detail, but to evaluate the role that serotonin may play within these hypothesized mechanisms.It is widely accepted that diminished serotonergic (5-HTergic) function is involved in the onset and course of depression. 3,4 The 5-HTergic system is a large and complex system. Although nearly all cell bodies of 5-HTergic neurons are located in the raphe nuclei in the brain stem, the axons of these neurons innervate almost the entire brain. The actions of 5-HT are mediated by 16 types and subtypes of receptors. 5 As the 5-HTergic system is assumed to be a modulatory system, the exact func...

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“…LeMarquand et al 78 and Pettinati 79 have recently reviewed the extensive experimental literature that links serotonergic neurotransmission to alcohol consumption. In humans, the effects of selective serotonergic medications on alcohol consumption appear to be more limited and more variable than is true for the opioid antagonists.…”

Section: Treatment Of Alcohol Dependencementioning

confidence: 99%

Treatment of alcohol dependence

Kranzler¹

1997

Liver Transpl

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Serotonin and alcohol intake, abuse, and dependence: Clinical evidence

Cited by 328 publications

References 114 publications

The Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitor Sertraline Reduces Excessive Alcohol Consumption in Nonhuman Primates: Effect of Stress

The Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitor Sertraline Reduces Excessive Alcohol Consumption in Nonhuman Primates: Effect of Stress

Serotonergic vulnerability and depression: assumptions, experimental evidence and implications

Treatment of alcohol dependence

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