Fig. 1: Operant binge ethanol self-administration model.

A Male (n = 8) and female (n = 8) C57BL/6J mice learn to respond on the active lever for ethanol reinforcers. Females tended to respond on the active lever more than males did across days, with the effect being significant on day 9. B Female C57BL/6J mice consumed more ethanol on a grams per kilogram basis. Note that the standard error of the mean for Day 9 FR4 males is too small to be depicted (Mean 3.47 ± 0.16 SEM). C Rewards earned for male and female C57BL/6J mice. D On the ninth day of FR4, all mice had blood ethanol concentrations above 80 mg/dl, which is the threshold for binge intoxication. The blood ethanol concentration values significantly correlated with the calculated grams per kilogram consumed.