Comparing Rewarding Value of Alcohol and Friendship in Adolescent Mice

Department of Psychology, Bridgewater College, Bridgewater, Virginia

HILL, T.A., SCROGHAM, S.N., LYNN, C.R., and KELLEY, B.M.

What Would You Choose?

OR

Introduction
Adolescent alcohol use is a significant problem is the United
States with 7.2 million adolescents between the ages of 12-17
reporting consuming alcohol in the last year and 13% had at
least one serious problem related to underage drinking in the
past year (SAMHSA National Household Survey on Drug Abuse
Stats, 2005). Statistics show that the younger a child is when he
or she begins drinking, the more likely they are to develop
problems with alcohol as adults (Adolescent Substance Abuse
Knowledge Base 2007). One of the major causes of alcohol use
in adolescents is thought to be peer pressure and social
anxiety. Once an adolescent associates with drug-using peers,
his or her own substance use approaches their level,
suggesting a distinct impact of peer-group on alcohol use and
abuse (Steinberg, 1994). Research also shows that the number
of peers within an adolescents immediate environment who
have started to drink have a significant impact on adolescent
alcohol use (Alcoholism: Clinical & Experimental Research,
2008). In light of the multiple variables and complex
interaction between them seen in human alcohol consumption
and its effects, we set out to determine the possible
correlations and interactions between age and social situation
in relation to alcohol consumption. The goal of this original
study was to observe how alcohol affects social interaction in
mice.

Rationale: Few, if any, animal models have

attempted to examine the relationship between
alcohol consumption and/or versus social
interaction. The present study examines the
rewarding value of alcohol compared to social
interaction in adolescent male mice.

Methods
Mice were be divided into three groups. Group 1) mice were tested with
saline and friend Group 2) mice were tested with ethanol and saline. Group
3) the mice were tested with ethanol, saline, and social exposure.
This is a classical conditioning paradigm in which something rewarding is
repeated paired with a distinct environment.
Conditioned Place Preference
The equipment for this experiment included a conditioned place preference
apparatus. This entailed a box with a black side with a smooth floor and a
white side with a textured floor. On either side, a Plexiglas divider with
holes created a place of residence for the friend mouse during conditioning.
The divider between the black and white sides could be either 1) solid for
conditioning purposes or 2) present with a small door to determine the
animals preference. During preference testing and conditioning, a screen
was placed on the box.
Preference Pre-test
Each mouse was placed into the conditioned place preference box and
allowed to run freely to the white or black side of the box for 20 minutes to
determine preference.

Pre-Test?

Conditioning
Mice were injected once a day at the same time of day. Mice were placed
back into the cage for 5 minutes (for drug dispersion). Mice received
alternating saline then ethanol exposure and alternating ethanol and friend
exposure. After 5 minutes in the cage, the mice were placed into the white
or black side (with solid divider) of separate conditioned place preference
boxes according to pretest preferences. The mice remained in separate
conditioned place preference boxes for 20 minutes each.

1) Pair alcohol or 2) friend

with non-preferred side?
And, 3) alcohol with nonpreferred side and friend
Preference Post-test with preferred side.
The divider with a door was placed in the conditioned place preference box
so that the mouse could choose which side of the box to occupy. The mouse
did not have any drug exposure other than that of the previous conditioning
day. The time each experimental mouse spent on the black and white side
for posttest was compared to the times for the pretest. This allowed a way
to measure whether the mice had a preference to ethanol or social
interaction after conditioning.

Post-Test?

Hypothesis: Ethanol will increase reward across all

test conditions and ethanol will serve as a stronger
reinforcer than social interaction in adolescent
subjects.

What
side do
you
prefer?

Now,
what side
do you
prefer?

After conditioning subjects shift their side preference

to the side paired with the strongest reinforcer.

Results
A one way ANOVA was performed and resulted in a
significant difference across groups [F (2,31) = 4.96, p <
0.014]. Follow up post hoc tests revealed that the Friend
groups was significantly different compared to the Alcohol
(p < 0.023) and Alcohol and Friends groups. (p < 0.036) In
comparing total effect due to conditioning, there was no
difference across the three groups (ignoring direction of
effect and focusing on total change data).
Discussion
In adolescent subjects, ethanol as well as social interaction
was rewarding. However, when ethanol was paired with a
different environment compared to the social environment
in the conditioned place preference test, ethanol had a
greater influence on adolescent behavior. Ethanol and
social interaction was nearly equally rewarding, assuming
that when a mouse chose between ethanol and social
interaction there would be little evidence for preference.
Contrarily, ethanol was preferred above social interaction.
Future research is necessary to explore conditioned place
preference for ethanol combined with social interaction, as
this may be more indicative of a real-life scenario.

Since this hypothesis has never been evaluated

before now, resulting knowledge may have a
profound impact on future interventions for human
alcohol use during adolescents.