Synaptic plasticity mechanisms common to learning and alcohol use disorder

Alcohol use disorders include drinking problems that span a range from binge drinking to alcohol abuse and dependence. Plastic changes in synaptic efficacy, such as long-term depression and long-term potentiation are widely recognized as mechanisms involved in learning and memory, responses to drugs of abuse, and addiction. In this review, we focus on the effects of chronic ethanol (EtOH) exposure on the induction of synaptic plasticity in different brain regions. We also review findings indicating that synaptic plasticity occurs in vivo during EtOH exposure, with a focus on ex vivo electrophysiological indices of plasticity. Evidence for effects of EtOH-induced or altered synaptic plasticity on learning and memory and EtOH-related behaviors is also reviewed. As this review indicates, there is much work needed to provide more information about the molecular, cellular, circuit, and behavioral consequences of EtOH interactions with synaptic plasticity mechanisms.

• Publication year

  2018

• Venue

  Learning & memory (Cold Spring Harbor, N.Y.)

• Publication date

  2018-08-16

• Fields of study

  Biology, Medicine, Psychology

• Identifiers
  DOI 10.1101/lm.046722.117PMID 30115764PMCID 6097767
• External record

  Open on Semantic Scholar

• Source metadata

  Semantic Scholar, PubMed

• No claims are published for this paper.

• No concepts are published for this paper.

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