Genome-wide transcriptional profiling uncovers a similar oligodendrocyte-related transcriptional response to acute and chronic alcohol drinking in the amygdala

Alcohol intake progressively increases after prolonged consumption of alcohol, but relatively few new therapeutics targeting development of alcohol use disorder (AUD) have been validated. Here, we conducted a genome-wide RNA-sequencing (RNA-seq) analysis in mice exposed to different modes (acute vs chronic) of ethanol drinking. We focused on transcriptional profiles in the amygdala including the central and basolateral subnuclei, a brain area previously implicated in alcohol drinking and seeking, demonstrating distinct gene expression patterns and canonical pathways induced by both acute and chronic intake. Surprisingly, both drinking modes triggered similar transcriptional changes, including up-regulation of ribosome-related/translational pathways and myelination pathways, and down-regulation of chromatin binding and histone modification. Notably, multiple genes that were significantly regulated in mouse amygdala with alcohol drinking, including Atp2b1, Slc4a7, Nfkb1, Nts, and Hdac2, among others had previously been associated with human AUD via GWAS or other genomic studies. In addition, analyses of hub genes and upstream regulatory pathways predicted that voluntary ethanol consumption affects epigenetic changes via histone deacetylation pathways, oligodendrocyte and myelin function, and oligodendrocyte-related transcriptional factor, Sox17. Overall, our results suggest that the transcriptional landscape in the central and basolateral subnuclei of the amygdala is sensitive to voluntary alcohol drinking. They provide a unique resource of gene expression data for future translational studies examining transcriptional mechanisms underlying the development of AUD due to alcohol consumption.