Alcohol and Alcoholism Advance Access originally published online on October 11, 2004
Alcohol and Alcoholism 2004 39(6):499-502; doi:10.1093/alcalc/agh103
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Alcohol & Alcoholism Vol. 39, No. 6 © Medical Council on Alcohol 2004; all rights reserved
ORAL CHRONIC ETHANOL ADMINISTRATION TO RODENTS BY AGAR GEL DIET
National Public Health Institute, Department of Mental Health and Alcohol Research, POB 33, 00251 Helsinki, Finland
* Author to whom correspondence should be addressed at: National Public Health Institute, Alcohol Research Center, POB 33, 00251 Helsinki, Finland. Fax: + 358 9 47448133; E-mail: kai.lindros{at}ktl.fi
(Received 1 September 2004; first review notified 15 September 2004; in revised form 19 September 2004; accepted 19 September 2004)
Background: Chronic ethanol administration to rodents requires specially designed equipment and is labor intensive. Here we report a new procedure. Method: A commercial liquid diet preparation was made into a gel by addition of 0.5% agar. The gel, containing 5.3% ethanol, was offered in Falcon tubes equipped with a feeding opening. Results: The gel consumption by C57/Bl mice resulted in high blood ethanol levels (average 43 mM). After 6 weeks, marked liver steatosis and significantly increased serum alanine aminotransferase levels had developed. Conclusions: Administration of ethanol in a nutritionally adequate gel provides a simple method for studies on chronic ethanol effects in rodents.