| Women appear more vulnerable to alcohol-related problems at lower levels of consumption compared to men. With respect to alcohol-related cognitive deficits, gender differences seem specific to higher processes. The objectives of this project were to ensure similar levels of alcohol exposure between the sexes using a chronic intermittent alcohol exposure (CIE) treatment in rats, and test if delayed recall, a higher process, is more impaired in CIE-treated females than male counterparts. Experiment 1: Animals were assigned to one of three CIE groups (control, Low Dose, High Dose). Blood alcohol concentrations (BACs) and alcohol-induced motor impairment were sampled during the CIE period; both were similar between the sexes. Experiment 2: Animals were tested for spatial ability after 10 and 30 days of abstinence in the Morris watermaze. CIE-treated animals, regardless of sex, demonstrated recovery of function after prolonged abstinence. Experiment 3: Animals were tested for sex differences under delayed recall following CIE treatment under three alcohol challenges. When alcohol-free, Low Dose females were more impaired than male counterparts. Acute alcohol administration (0.5 g/kg) impaired alcohol-naive females more than male counterparts. Under 1.0 g/kg alcohol, all females were more impaired than males. The experiments above suggest that female rats may be more sensitive to alcohol's specific effects on delayed recall compared to males. |
