We utilized a mouse model of adolescent binge drinking to better understand adolescent brain development and the impact of binge drinking. C57BL/6 mice were evaluated both just after ethanol treatment towards the end of adolescence (P38) and weeks after treatment during young adulthood. Among subtypes of alcohol dependence, adolescent-youth limited adult alcohol dependence is the most common subtype (Jacob et al., 2005; Moss et al., 2008). We found that adolescent binge treatment altered adult gene expression, particularly cholinergic genes, reduced olfactory bulb and forebrain volume, decreased cholinergic neuron density and caused deficits in reversal, but not spatial learning.
