Animal models have been used to study the influence of genetic factors on the effects of alcohol and on alcohol drinking behavior (reviewed in Bell et al., 2005; McBride and Li, 1998; Murphy et al., 2002). Studies on rats and mice have the advantages of allowing control of ethanol exposure and access to fresh tissues at any time. Kerns et al. (2005) reported that acute i.p. ethanol injections altered expression of genes involved in glucocorticoid signaling, neurogenesis, myelination, neuropeptide signaling, and retinoic acid signaling in three brain regions of C57BL/6J and DBA/2J mice. Rodd et al. (2008) reported that operant ethanol self-administration altered gene expression in the Acb and amygdala of inbred P rats. Another study (Bell et al., 2009) reported gene expression changes in the Acb of P rats following chronic 24-h free-choice ethanol drinking; significant differences in expression of genes involved in intracellular signaling pathways and transcription factors were found between the alcohol and water groups.
