Effect of the acetylcholinesterase inhibitor galanthamine on learning and memory in prolonged alcohol intake rat model of acetylcholine deficit

Different cholinomimetics are used in conditions CNS acetylcholine (Ach) deficit. In this study, we examined the effect of the acetylcholinesterase inhibitor galanthamine in a prolonged alcohol intake model of Ach deficit in male Wistar rats. After 16 weeks of alcohol intake and a 2-week pause, rats administered galanthamine (2.5 mg/kg/day i.p.) showed an improved speed of learning and short-term memory in the shuttle box test as compared to the saline-injected alcoholic group (p < 0.05). Four weeks later, significant improvement in the passive avoidance memory of alcoholic galanthamine-treated rats was noted in the eight-arm radial maze (14 day test duration) as compared to the saline-injected alcoholic group (p < 0.05). During the first week in the shuttle box test, the nonalcoholic galanthamine-treated animals exhibited significantly impaired performance as compared to the untreated nonalcoholic control, while four weeks later, in the eight-arm radial maze, both groups did not differ. Our results show that galanthamine improves the speed of learning, short-term memory and spatial orientation of rats in conditions of prolonged alcohol intake. (C) 1999 Prous Science. All rights reserved.