Introduction
CORTEX
Acute alcohol intoxication is widely known to impact cognitive functions including executive control and psychomotor functioningIn a laboratory setting, inhibitory control is often measured with a Go/No-go or Stop-signal taskWhile the behavioral effects of alcohol consumption are relatively consistent, the impact of alcohol on brain activity during inhibitory control tasks is less clear. Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) studies have shown that the prefrontal regions are implicated in inhibitory control. In particular, the right prefrontal cortex plays a critical role in this function, revealed as a distinct asymmetry in brain activity between right and left prefrontal regions when individuals are engaged in no-go conditions of the taskFunctional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS), which also measures brain hemodynamic activity, is a rapidly growing brain imaging technique. While fNIRS imaging is limited to cortical regions, it has advantages over fMRI including: ease-of-use, portability/wearability, safety, and being more cost-effective. In this vein, fNIRS provides a unique opportunity to examine the brain under the influence of alcoholSome studies have looked at dose-dependent effects of alcohol on the brainHere, we report group-level dose-dependent changes in behavior, subjective feelings of intoxication, and brain activity. In doing so, we quantify observed changes in prefrontal asymmetry by not only considering a standard measure of brain lateralization, but also introduce novel measures of lateralization that are time-locked and more granular. Furthermore, we explore the relationship between task performance, alcohol intoxication levels [measured breath alcohol content (BrAC) converted to equivalent blood alcohol content (BAC)], and neural factors (prefrontal lateralization), while also considering demographic information. This analysis elucidates the role that lateralized prefrontal activity plays in inhibitory control under the influence of acute alcohol intoxication.