The mechanisms which account for the diminished responsiveness (tolerance) of an individual to a drug, as a result of prior exposure to that drug, are not yet fully understood. Recently, it has been suggested that drug tolerance is a learned adaptive response. This possibility was examined by studying the effect of ethanol on body temperature and behavioral thermoregulatory responses of Sprague-Dawley rats. Two major studies were conducted. The first study examined the initial dose-related effects of ethanol (1, 2, or 3 g/kg i.p.); the second study examined the effect of ethanol (2.5 g/kg i.p.) administered on 14 consecutive days. Rats were tested in a thermocline, a hollo plexiglass tube in which a linear temperature gradient (6-36°C) was established through local heating and cooling of opposite ends of the tube. The position of rats in the thermocline was detected by a series of infrared light emitting diodes and photocells. The body temperature of rats in the thermocline was transmitted by a temperature sensitive telemetry capsule surgically placed in the peritoneal cavity. Validation studies demonstrated that rats reliably responded to temperature cues within the thermocline. In the first experiment ethanol produced a dose-related decrease in body temperature. All rats following injection initially selected an ambient temperature cooler than baseline. Rats receiving control treatment or the high dose of ethanol eventually shifted to a warmer ambient temperature. Activity levels were depressed equally by all three doses of ethanol. In the second experiment tolerance developed to the hypothermic effect of ethanol. A diminished response to ethanol was evident by the second test day and was maximal by day 7. Ethanol treated rats selected a cooler ambient temperature than control rats throughout the 14 day period, and activity levels continued to be depressed by ethanol throughout the 14 days. On the fifteenth day all rats were given an injection of saline. Rats which had previously received daily ethanol injections exhibited a hyperthermic response to saline compared to control rats. These results suggest that ethanol altered the central control of thermoregulation by lowering and possibly broadening the thermoregulatory set point. There was evidence for a conditioned hyperthermic response, but not a learned behavioral response, which contributed to the tolerance development.

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The present study attempted to show that alcohol's effects on aggression are mediated by attentional processes. Sixty-four college men over the age of 21 were provoked by a confederate and then distracted or non-distracted in order to determine the effects of attention on aggression. It was hypothesized that alcohol-distract subjects would be least aggressive, while alcohol-no distract subjects would be least aggressive. Contrary to predictions, the pattern of results suggested that alcohol-distract subjects are most aggressive and that alcohol-no distract subjects are the least aggressive. Although the data failed to support an attention-allocation model, future research should attempt to test such a link using other paradigms. / Master of Science

Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) / Harmful alcohol use is a global concern, which has made research in this area a prime public health interest. Previous research has identified alcohol-related attentional biases (Cox et al., 2002, 2007; Marissen et al., 2006; Streeter et al., 2008) and impulsivity (see Acton, 2003; Dick et al., 2010; Mulder, 2002) as two important predictors that affect alcohol use, seeking, and relapse (Cox et al., 2002; Robbins & Ehrman, 2004). Recent review of the literature has also revealed that there is a significant relationship between these two constructs (Coskunpinar & Cyders, 2013). The current study used college undergraduate social drinkers (at least 3 drinks per week) (n = 42, mean age = 23.27 (SD = 5.21), female: 69.2%) to examine the relationship between specific trait impulsivity facets and alcohol-related attentional biases and to examine how this relationship is affected by measurement type (eye movement, reaction time measures), attentional bias constructs (initial orientation, delayed disengagement), and environmental cues (specifically mood and alcohol olfactory cues). Participants had alcohol-related attentional bias as measured by reaction time (areas of interest: p < .05) and eye-movement data (areas of interest: p < .05), which was not affected by mood, odor, or urgency.

Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) / Prior research indicated a high prevalence of problematic drinking among college students, suggesting a need for more effective screening approaches and treatments. The tendency to act rashly in face of strong emotions (e.g. positive and negative urgency), alcohol cravings, and cue reactivity all have been associated with problematic alcohol use. However, no studies have examined the interactive effects of alcohol cravings, urgency, and cue reactivity. I hypothesized that alcohol cravings will be associated with greater problematic drinking among individuals with higher levels of (1) urgency, (2) cue reactivity, and (3) cue reactivity and urgency. Data were collected from a sample (final n = 240) of college students through a survey, which consisted of measures of urgency, problematic drinking, and alcohol cravings. On the survey, participants were also exposed to alcohol and non-alcohol pictures, after which they assessed their level of cue reactivity. Results were examined using multiple regression and simple slope analyses. Results provided partial support for our hypotheses. Alcohol cravings were associated with greater problematic drinking at lower levels of negative urgency (b = 7.36, p< 0.001). Furthermore, alcohol cravings were most strongly associated with problematic drinking at high levels of cue reactivity and low levels of negative urgency (b = 8.69, p<0.001), and at low levels of cue reactivity and high levels of positive urgency (b = 6.56, p<0.001). These findings emphasize the importance of considering urgency and cue reactivity in understanding how alcohol cravings create risk for problematic drinking.