ArticleAlcoholism, clinical and experimental research2014
Chronic methylphenidate treatment during early life is associated with greater ethanol intake in socially isolated rats.
Article in Alcoholism, clinical and experimental research, 2014. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 10 papers.
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Who cites it
10 citing papers in PubMed, 11 citations in OpenAlex.
- Impact of adolescent social Isolation on increased risk for alcohol intake and aversion-resistant drinking in males and females.Research square · 2026Article
- Serotonin-dopamine interactions in psychostimulant-induced gene regulation: SSRI antidepressants potentiate gene regulation by methylphenidate (Ritalin) in the striatum and enhance behavioral profile indicative of addiction liability in rodents.Neuroscience and biobehavioral reviews · 2025Review
- Chronic Methylphenidate Effects on Brain Gene Expression: An Exploratory Review.Psychology research and behavior management · 2024Review
- Sex differences in ethanol consumption and drinking despite negative consequences following adolescent social isolation stress in male and female rats.Physiology & behavior · 2023Article
- Effects of voluntary adolescent intermittent alcohol exposure and social isolation on adult alcohol intake in male rats.Alcohol (Fayetteville, N.Y.) · 2022Article
- Heritable Differences in Catecholamine Signaling Modulate Susceptibility to Trauma and Response to Methylphenidate Treatment: Relevance for PTSD.Frontiers in behavioral neuroscience · 2019Article
- Amphetamine, but not methylphenidate, increases ethanol intake in adolescent male, but not in female, rats.Brain and behavior · 2018Article
- Sex differences, learning flexibility, and striatal dopamine D1 and D2 following adolescent drug exposure in rats.Behavioural brain research · 2016Article
- Adolescent Social Isolation as a Model of Heightened Vulnerability to Comorbid Alcoholism and Anxiety Disorders.Alcoholism, clinical and experimental research · 2016Review
- Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder in relation to addictive behaviors: a moderated-mediation analysis of personality-risk factors and sex.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2015Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
5 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundMethylphenidate (MPH) is a stimulant prescribed to treat attention-deficit/ hyperactivity disorder. Its primary mechanism of action is in the dopamine system, alterations of which are associated with vulnerability to alcohol abuse. There are concerns that juvenile MPH treatment may influence adult drinking behavior. This study examined the interaction of MPH treatment and environmental rearing conditions, which are known to independently influence ethanol (EtOH) drinking behavior, on anxiety-like behavior and vulnerability to alcohol abuse in a juvenile rodent model.
methodsMale Sprague-Dawley rats were housed in enriched, standard, or isolated conditions for 4 weeks, starting at postnatal day 21. Rats were concurrently treated with 8 mg/kg/d MPH or saline, delivered via osmotic minipump. Anxiety-like behavior was determined at the end of the treatment session, and 5 weeks later. After MPH treatment, rats were exposed to a 2-bottle choice EtOH drinking procedure that lasted 3 weeks.
resultsEarly life chronic MPH treatment was associated with greater EtOH intake and greater EtOH preference, but only in socially isolated animals. Isolated animals had greater levels of anxiety-like behavior than standard-housed or enriched animals after 4 weeks of exposure to the housing conditions, a difference that persisted even after all animals had been individually housed for an additional 5 weeks and exposed to EtOH.
conclusionsThese results suggest that early life MPH treatment may increase vulnerability to EtOH drinking in adulthood in a subset of the population. Additionally, this study highlights the importance of early rearing condition for establishing long-lasting behavioral phenotypes. Environmental histories should be considered when prescribing MPH treatment to young children.
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