Ethanol effects on temperature-sensitive hypothalamic neurons in rat brain slices

1.We recorded impulse activity of thermosensitive hypothalamic neurons in rat brain slices during superfusion with ethanol at constant temperatures and during slow sinusoidal temperature changes.2.At constant temperatures of 37°C, ethanol application typically induced a triphasic change of the firing rate: An initial excitation turned into complete inhibition followed by spontaneous recovery to higher firing rates.3.Ethanol application increased the neurons’ temperature sensitivity remarkably.4.Our data indicate complex neuromodulatory effects of ethanol with different time delays which interfere with basic mechanisms of temperature transduction.