Abstract

Today, alcohol is widely consumed and it is also the most commonly abused drug in the world, a cause of vast medical and societal costs. Alcohol in low to moderate amounts relieves anxiety and fosters a feeling of well-being or even euphoria. The lethal dose of alcohol in humans is variable, but death generally occur when blood alcohol levels are greater than 400 to 500mg/dl. The consumption of alcohol in high doses over a long period results in tolerance and in physical and psychological dependence. Alcohol dependence increases locomotor activity through mechanism related to reward system involving mesolimbic dopaminergic pathway. A wide range of pharmacotherapy is available for the treatment of alcohol dependence and withdrawal have been introduced but none of them have shown proven efficacy and safety. 

In the present study, Dopaminergic antagonist, like Quetiapine and Olanzapine were studied as new pharmacotherapy for treating alcohol dependence and withdrawal using actophotometer for alcohol induced hyperactivity and Elevated plus maze for anxiety profile. The Albino mice (wt=30 g) were divided into different groups (n=6) consisting of control(saline), alcohol (10% v/v and 20% v/v) and test ( Olanzapine1.8 mg/kg and Quetiapine 36 mg/kg) groups. Alcohol was administered orally in a single dose of 2-3g/kg for actophotometer whereas for elevated plus maze, alcohol was administered orally in a dose of 3g/kg for 14 days. The test drugs, Olanzapine(1.8 mg/kg) and Quetiapine(36 mg/kg) was administered intraperitoneally in a single dose. The increase in the locomotor activity of the test group were compared with the alcohol group showed statistically significant results (P < 0.01) compared to alcohol group except the results obtained in Quetiapine group. The results of elevated plus maze showed that the no. of enteries in the open arm of the olanzapine and quetiapine group showed statistically significant results (P < 0.01) compared to alcohol group. Time spent in open arm of the test group was found to be statistically not significant when compared to alcohol group.

Keywords: Alcohol dependence, dopamine, reward pathway, mesolimbic dopaminergic pathway, dopamine antagonists, Quetiapine, Olanzapine.