Semaglutide reduces alcohol intake and relapse-like drinking in male and female rats

Background Glucagon-like peptide1 receptor (GLP-1R) agonists have been found to reduce alcohol drinking in ro-dents and overweight patients with alcohol use disorder (AUD). However, the probability of low semaglutide doses, an agonist with higher potency and affinity for GLP-1R, to attenuate alcohol-related responses in rodents and the underlying neuronal mechanisms is unknown.Methods In the intermittent access model, we examined the ability of semaglutide to decrease alcohol intake and block relapse-like drinking, as well as imaging the binding of fluorescently marked semaglutide to nucleus accumbens (NAc) in both male and female rats. The suppressive effect of semaglutide on alcohol-induced locomotor stimulation and in vivo dopamine release in NAc was tested in male mice. We evaluated effect of semaglutide on the in vivo release of dopamine metabolites (DOPAC and HVA) and gene expression of enzymes metabolising dopamine (MAOA and COMT) in male mice.Findings In male and female rats, acute and repeated semaglutide administration reduced alcohol intake and pre-vented relapse-like drinking. Moreover, fluorescently labelled semaglutide was detected in NAc of alcohol-drinking male and female rats. Further, semaglutide attenuated the ability of alcohol to cause hyperlocomotion and to elevate dopamine in NAc in male mice. As further shown in male mice, semaglutide enhanced DOPAC and HVA in NAc when alcohol was onboard and increased the gene expression of COMT and MAOA.Interpretation Altogether, this indicates that semaglutide reduces alcohol drinking behaviours, possibly via a reduction in alcohol-induced reward and NAc dependent mechanisms. As semaglutide also decreased body weight of alcohol-drinking rats of both sexes, upcoming clinical studies should test the plausibility that semaglutide reduces alcohol intake and body weight in overweight AUD patients.Funding Swedish Research Council (2019-01676), LUA/ALF (723941) from the Sahlgrenska University Hospital and the Swedish brain foundation.Copyright & COPY; 2023 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier B.V. This is an open access article under the CC BY license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).

Automated summary

This study found that glucagon-like peptide1 receptor (GLP-1R) agonists can reduce alcohol intake and prevent relapse in rodents. The results also showed that semaglutide has a suppressive effect on alcohol-induced behavior and its impact on the brain. These findings suggest that semaglutide may be effective in reducing alcohol consumption and body weight by reducing the rewarding effects of alcohol and its impact on neurons.