The pharmacodynamics of anticonvulsant and subconvulsant effects of ethanol in CBA and C57BL/6 mice

Abstract 

A method of determination of minimal effective doses (MEDs) of bicuculline causing clonic–tonic convulsions (CTC) and tonic extension (TE) was used to investigate ethanol pharmacodynamics in C57BL/6 and CBA mice, differing in levels of alcohol predisposition. It is observed that ethanol produces a powerful anticonvulsant action antagonizing convulsant effects of bicuculline. On a long-term scale, the pharmacological action of alcohol had two phases in both strains of mice: anticonvulsant (in the interval 5 min to 4 h after ethanol administration) and subconvulsant (4–24 h after ethanol administration). C57BL/6 mice were characterized by a more rapid development of the anticonvulsant effect and its faster decay in comparison to CBA strain. A possibility of correct quantitative evaluation of data allows using the method of MED determination as an express model of an acute alcohol abstinence syndrome, as well as for screening of new antialcohol drugs.

Keywords:  Ethanol, Pharmacodynamics, CBA, C57BL/6, Anticonvulsant, Subconvulsant, Bicuculline