Using lickometry to infer differential contributions of salience network regions during compulsion-like alcohol drinking

Starski, Phillip; Sergio, Thatiane De Oliveira; Hopf, F. Woodward

doi:10.1016/j.addicn.2023.100102

Cited by 6 publications

(2 citation statements)

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“…Considering consumption‐related HRV patterns across the 10‐min intake period were associated with CLAD rather than alcohol‐only, these data are in agreement with previous work suggesting that these sustained HRV changes may be related to shifts in the cognitive‐emotional action strategy used during CLAD. 9 , 10 , 50 , 51 Importantly, our results also suggest that, within the heart, females and males display different autonomic promoters of CLAD, with greater PNS influence in females and SNS in males.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 59%

“…Compulsive alcohol drinking, where consumption persists despite known negative consequences, can be a key driver of problem intake and is often a major obstacle to treatment. 9 , 10 However, despite the substantial harms, and growing evidence that important sex differences exist within human drinking problems, there continue to be limited pharmacotherapies, and no treatments individualized by biological sex. 11 Thus, there is a critical unmet need to develop novel, personalized interventions, which would be greatly aided by identifying sex‐specific mechanisms that promote alcohol intake.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Sex differences in heart rate variability measures that predict alcohol drinking in rats

Frasier,

Starski,

de Oliveira Sergio

et al. 2024

Addiction Biology

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Problem alcohol drinking continues to be a substantial cost and burden. In addition, alcohol consumption in women has increased in recent decades, and women can have greater alcohol problems and comorbidities. Thus, there is a significant need for novel therapeutics to enhance sex‐specific, individualized treatment. Heart rate (HR) and HR variability (HRV) are of broad interest because they may be both biomarkers for and drivers of pathological states. HRV reflects the dynamic balance between sympathetic (SNS, ‘fight or flight’) and parasympathetic (PNS, ‘rest and digest’) systems. Evidence from human studies suggest PNS predominance in women and SNS in men during autonomic regulation, indicating the possibility of sex differences in risk factors and physiological drivers of problem drinking. To better understand the association between HRV sex differences and alcohol drinking, we examined whether alcohol consumption levels correlated with time domain HRV measures (SDNN and rMSSD) at baseline, at alcohol drinking onset, and across 10 min of drinking, in adult female and male Wistar rats. In particular, we compared both HRV and HR measures under alcohol‐only and compulsion‐like conditions (alcohol + 10 mg/L quinine), because compulsion can often be a significant barrier to treatment of alcohol misuse. Importantly, previous work supports the possibility that different HRV measures could be interpreted to reflect PNS versus SNS influences. Here, we show that females with higher putative PNS indicators at baseline and at drinking onset had greater alcohol consumption. In contrast, male intake levels related to increased potential SNS measures at drinking onset. Once alcohol was consumed, HR predicted intake level in females, perhaps a pharmacological effect of alcohol. However, HRV changes were greater during compulsion‐like intake versus alcohol‐only, suggesting HRV changes (reduced SNS in females, reduced PNS and increased HR in males) specifically related to aversion‐resistant intake. We find novel and likely clinically relevant autonomic differences associated with biological sex and alcohol drinking, suggesting that different autonomic mechanisms may promote differing aspects of female and male alcohol consumption.

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