Midazolam, methamphetamine, morphine and nicotine intake in high‐drinking‐in‐the‐dark mice

The high‐drinking‐in‐the‐dark (HDID) lines of mice were selectively bred for achieving high blood alcohol levels in the drinking‐in‐the‐dark (DID) task and have served as a unique genetic risk model for binge‐like alcohol intake. However, little is known about their willingness to consume other addictive drugs. Here, we examined (a) whether the HDID‐1 and HDID‐2 lines of mice would voluntarily consume midazolam, methamphetamine, morphine and nicotine in a DID test and (b) whether the HDID lines differ from their founders, heterogeneous stock/Northport (HS/NPT), in consumption levels of these drugs at the concentrations tested. Separate groups of HDID‐1, HDID‐2 and HS/NPT mice were given 4 days of access to each drug, using the single‐bottle, limited‐access DID paradigm. Male and female mice of both HDID lines consumed all four offered drugs. We observed no genotype differences in 40 μg/ml methamphetamine intake, but significant differences in nicotine, midazolam and morphine intake. Both HDID lines drank significantly more (150 μg/ml) midazolam than their founders, providing strong support for a shared genetic contribution to binge ethanol and midazolam intake. HDID‐2 mice, but not HDID‐1 mice, consumed more morphine (700 μg/ml) and more nicotine across a range of concentrations than HS/NPT mice. These results demonstrate that the HDID mice can be utilized for tests of voluntary drug consumption other than ethanol and highlight potentially important differences between HDID lines in risk for elevated drug intake. High drinking in the dark lines of mice (HDID‐1 and HDID‐2) and their founder line (HS/NPT) were tested for their willingness to consume several addictive drugs. No genotype differences were observed for methamphetamine (40 μg/ml) intake, but both HDID lines drank significantly more midazolam (150 μg/ml) than their founders. Further, HDID‐2 mice, but not HDID‐1 mice, consumed more morphine (700 μg/ml) and more nicotine across a range of concentrations than HS/NPT mice.