Long-term effects of early ethanol on predatory behavior in inbred mice

Abstract

A system was developed to study the long-lasting neurological and behavioral effects of known amounts of ethanol received transplacentally and via the mother’s milk by C57BL/10 and DBA/1 mice offspring. The present paper is concerned with the cricket-predation behavior of the offspring at ages 50 and 51 days. Treated DBA offspring had a 58% reduction in predatory incidences, compared to control, but the already nonpredatory C57 strain was not affected significantly by ethanol. The treated mice that preyed on the crickets had normal latencies. A few general facts related to the nature of predatory behavior were also noticed: DBA mice had a higher proportion of predation and shorter latencies than C57, improvement across trials was specific to the C57 strain, there was a high correlation between trials, both sexes displayed predatory behavior, and isolation did not affect predation. Predatory behavior offers a simple reliable tool for psychopharmacological research. © 1976, Psychonomic Society, Inc.. All rights reserved.