Ontogeny of ethanol intake in alcohol preferring (P) and alcohol nonpreferring (NP) rats

There is a scarcity of research on ethanol affinity in alcohol‐preferring (P) rats before weaning and it is unknown if neonate P rats exhibit ethanol intake preferences comparable to those observed in adult P rats. This study examined ethanol intake in P and alcohol‐nonpreferring (NP) rats 3 hr after birth (Experiment 1, surrogate nipple test), at postnatal days (PD) 8, 12, and 18 (Experiment 2, consumption from the floor procedure) and at adolescence (Experiment 3, two‐bottle choice test at PD32). The high‐preference genotype was readily expressed 3 hr after birth. P neonates drank twice as much ethanol as their NP counterparts. This heightened ethanol preference transiently reversed at P8, reemerged as weaning approached (P18) and was fully expressed during adolescence. These results help to clarify the ontogeny of genetic predisposition for ethanol. Genetic predisposition for higher ethanol intake in P than in NP rats seems to be present immediately following birth. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Dev Psychobiol 53:234–245, 2011.