Recent studies have shown that manipulating basolateral amygdala (BLA) activity can affect alcohol consumption, particularly following chronic and/or long-term intake. Although the mechanisms underlying these effects remain unclear, the BLA is highly sensitive to emotional stimuli including stress and anxiety. Negative emotional states facilitate alcohol craving and relapse in patients with alcohol use disorders. Consequently, the aim of this study was to determine the effect of long-term (10 weeks) alcohol drinking on synaptic activity in BLA principal neurons. We utilized an intermittent drinking paradigm in rats, which facilitated escalating, binge-like alcohol intake over the 10 week drinking period. We then recorded spontaneous excitatory and inhibitory postsynaptic currents of BLA principal neurons from long-term alcohol drinking rats and aged-matched water drinking controls. Excitatory postsynaptic current properties from long-term alcohol drinking rats were unchanged compared to those from age-matched water drinking controls. Conversely, we observed significant reductions of inhibitory postsynaptic current amplitude and frequency in long-term ethanol drinking rats compared to age-matched water drinking controls. These results highlight substantive decreases in basal inhibitory synaptic activity of BLA principal neurons following long-term alcohol consumption. A loss of inhibitory control in the BLA could explain the high incidence of compulsive drinking and stress- or anxiety-induced relapse in patients with alcohol use disorders.

最近的研究表明，操纵基底外侧杏仁核（BLA）活性会影响酒精的摄入，尤其是在长期和/或长期摄入酒精后。尽管影响这些作用的机制尚不清楚，但BLA对包括压力和焦虑在内的情绪刺激高度敏感。负性情绪状态有助于饮酒障碍患者的饮酒渴望和复发。因此，本研究的目的是确定长期饮酒（10周）对BLA主要神经元突触活性的影响。我们在大鼠中采用了间歇性饮水范例，在饮水10周期间促进了不断升级的暴饮般酒精摄入。然后，我们记录了长期饮酒大鼠和年龄匹配的饮水对照的BLA主要神经元的自发性兴奋性和突触后突触后电流。与年龄相匹配的饮水对照组相比，长期饮酒大鼠的兴奋性突触后电流特性没有变化。相反，我们观察到与年龄匹配的饮水对照组相比，长期饮酒的大鼠中抑制性突触后电流幅度和频率显着降低。这些结果突出了长期饮酒后BLA主要神经元的基础抑制突触活性的实质性降低。在BLA中失去抑制性控制可能解释了酒精滥用障碍患者中强迫性饮酒和压力或焦虑症诱发的复发的高发生率。