Alcohol impairs learning and timing of conditioned eyeblink responsesShow others and affiliations
2025 (English)In: Brain Research, ISSN 0006-8993, E-ISSN 1872-6240, Vol. 1854, article id 149545Article in journal (Refereed) Published
Abstract [en]
Alcohol impairs motor performance, but it remains unclear precisely why this is the case. Here, we examine the effects of alcohol intoxication on conditioned eyeblink responses, a form of classical conditioning dependent on the cerebellum. In experiment 1, the conditioned responses of 18 students before and after alcohol consumption up to 1 ‰ were compared against the performance of 26 non-drinking controls. In experiment 2, 17 students were tested repeatedly at increasing blood alcohol levels up to 1 ‰. The results reveal a gradual decrease in both the percentage and timing of conditioned responses following alcohol consumption, with pronounced impairments emerging at blood alcohol content levels exceeding 0.5 ‰. These findings are consistent with the idea that the motor deficits associated with alcohol consumption are linked to effects on the cerebellum.
Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
Elsevier, 2025. Vol. 1854, article id 149545
Keywords [en]
Alcohol, Cerebellum, Eyeblink Conditioning, Motor Ability, Motor Learning, Pharmacology, Timing
National Category
Neurosciences
Identifiers
URN: urn:nbn:se:umu:diva-236456DOI: 10.1016/j.brainres.2025.149545ISI: 001441137100001PubMedID: 40024359Scopus ID: 2-s2.0-85219513305OAI: oai:DiVA.org:umu-236456DiVA, id: diva2:1945995
Funder
Swedish Research Council, 2020-01468The Crafoord Foundation, 20180704The Crafoord Foundation, 20200729The Crafoord Foundation, 20220796The Crafoord Foundation, 20230655The Swedish Brain Foundation, FO2024-0361Royal Physiographic Society in Lund, 2022-04-25Gyllenstiernska Krapperup Foundation, KR2021-0040Gyllenstiernska Krapperup Foundation, KR2024-0102Sten K Johnson Foundation, 20230153Sten K Johnson Foundation, 20240482Hedlund foundation, M-2024-2498Magnus Bergvall Foundation, 2020-03788Magnus Bergvall Foundation, 2023-861Thorsten and Elsa Segerfalk Foundation, 2019-2246Åke Wiberg Foundation, M18-0070Åke Wiberg Foundation, M19-0375Åke Wiberg Foundation, M20-0008Fredrik och Ingrid Thurings Stiftelse, 2018-00366Fredrik och Ingrid Thurings Stiftelse, 2019-005162025-03-202025-03-202025-03-20Bibliographically approved