Alcohol-discrimination in gerbils: interactions with bemegride, DH-524, Amphetamine, and delta9-THC.

Male gerbils were trained to discriminate the effects of an injection of alcohol (1.0, 1.5, and 2.0 g/kg) from the nondrug condition in a T-shaped maze. The formation of the discrimination was related to the training dose used, the high dose (2 g/kg) being the most rapidly discriminable condition. After having reached a criterion of performing 8 correct first-trial choices out of 10 consecutive training sessions the animals were tested for possible generalization or antagonism with bemegride, DH-524, d-amphetamine or delta9-THC. The results suggested that neither of these drugs substituted for alcohol, nor did the drugs reverse or antagonize the alcohol-discrimination, i.e. the gerbils choose the nondrug associated position of the T-maze after single injections of the test-drugs whereas combinations of alcohol and the test-drugs resulted in responding appropriate for the alcohol-(training)-condition.