We and others have previously shown standard laboratory rats exposed to 20% ethanol using an intermittent-access two-bottle choice paradigm are transformed into high ethanol-consuming rats (Simms et al., 2008; Wise, 1973). We have also shown that Long-Evans rats self-administer 20% ethanol without sucrose fading using an operant self-administration protocol (Simms et al., 2010). Both methods produce very robust and reproducible levels of high voluntary ethanol consumption that are maintained over a long period of time. In the present study, we applied the 20% ethanol intermittent-access two-bottle choice and 20% ethanol operant self-administration models to train standard SD rats to consume ethanol. We then adapted the model described by Lê (2003), to study the effects of systemic nicotine administration (0.2mg/kg and 0.8mg/kg) on 20% ethanol operant self-administration and examined the effect of varenicline on nicotine-induced increases in ethanol self-administration.
