Taurine is an amino acid usually added to energy drinks. In rodents, acute taurine administration decreases voluntary alcohol intake, and subchronic administration restores different behavioral features impaired by alcohol withdrawal. In the present study, we evaluated the effects of chronic taurine treatment on voluntary alcohol consumption and changes in behavioral parameters in rats. Adult male Wistar rats were divided into two groups and were allowed to choose from two bottles containing 20% alcohol or 0.08% saccharin (vehicle solution), or two bottles containing vehicle, 24 h per day, for 5 weeks. After 3 weeks, rats received 100 mg/kg taurine (TAU) or saline (SAL) intraperitoneally once a day for 2 weeks, and daily alcohol consumption was monitored. On days 22 and 33, rats were tested in the open-field, and on day 34, they were exposed to the light/dark task (LDT). Our results show for the first time that chronic taurine treatment enhanced voluntary alcohol intake and preference in rats, and that these changes were accompanied by an anxiolytic-like phenotype in alcohol-treated rats, possibly due to its synergistic effect with alcohol on the dopaminergic and GABAergic systems.

牛磺酸是一种氨基酸，通常添加到能量饮料中。在啮齿动物中，急性牛磺酸给药会减少自愿饮酒，亚慢性给药可恢复因酒精戒断而受损的不同行为特征。在本研究中，我们评估了慢性牛磺酸治疗对大鼠自愿饮酒和行为参数变化的影响。将成年雄性 Wistar 大鼠分为两组，并允许从两瓶含有 20% 酒精或 0.08% 糖精（载体溶液）的瓶子或两瓶含有载体的瓶子中进行选择，每天 24 小时，持续 5 周。3 周后，大鼠每天一次腹腔注射 100 mg/kg 牛磺酸 (TAU) 或生理盐水 (SAL)，持续 2 周，并监测每日饮酒量。在第 22 天和第 33 天，大鼠在露天场地进行测试，并在第 34 天，他们暴露于明暗任务（LDT）。我们的结果首次表明，慢性牛磺酸治疗增强了大鼠的自愿饮酒和偏好，并且这些变化伴随着酒精治疗大鼠的抗焦虑样表型，可能是由于其与酒精对多巴胺能和GABA能系统。