Antagonism of the stimulant and depressant effects of ethanol in rats by naloxone

The action of naloxone (0.5 and 2 mg/kg IP) on the behavioural effects of a low (2 g/kg PO) and a high dose (4 g/kg PO) of ethanol was studied in rats. Ethanol at the low dose increased spontaneous motility, enhancing open-field external ambulations and reducing shuttle-box latency. All these effects were antagonized by naloxone. Ethanol at the high dose produced hypomotility, decreasing open-field external ambulations and impairing shuttle-box performance. In this case, naloxone also reduced the ethanol effect, but its action was less consistent. Therefore, although mechanisms other than a specific opioid receptor blockade by naloxone must be considered, an involvement of opioid peptides in the effects of ethanol cannot be discounted.