The thalamus is largely made up of relay neurons, and these show both synaptic and non-synaptic (“tonic”) inhibition. Synaptic inhibition in the thalamus seems to be insensitive to medium levels of ethanol, in contrast to findings in the cerebellum and the amygdala, but there is clear evidence for enhanced tonic inhibition in thalamic relay neurons in the mouse, from 30mM-50mM EtOH (Jia et al., 2008). These levels of alcohol are certainly consistent with marked CNS depressant effects of the drug in vivo, including profound sedation.
