Involvement of serotonergic neuronal systems in the anti-amnesic action of naftidrofuryl oxalate

Mechanisms linking depression co-morbid with obesity: An approach for serotonergic type 3 receptor antagonist as novel therapeutic intervention

Despite of the enormous research, therapeutic treatment for depression has always been a serious issue. Even though depression and obesity are individual abnormal health conditions, each act as a triggering factor for the other. Obese individuals are twice prone to develop depression than that of non-obese persons. The exact mechanism how obesity increases the risk for depression still remains an area of interest for research in neuropsychopharmacology. Depression and obesity share some common pathological pathways such as hyperactivity of hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis, dysregulation of oxidant/antioxidant system balance, higher level of inflammatory cytokines, leptin resistance, altered plasma glucose, insulin resistance, reduced neuronal brain derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and decreased serotonergic neurotransmission in various regions of brain. The antidepressant-like effect of 5-HT3 receptor antagonists through allosteric modulation of serotonergic pathways is well evident from several research investigations belonging to our and some in other laboratories. Furthermore, serotonin regulates diet intake, leptin, corticosterone, inflammatory mechanisms, altered plasma glucose, insulin resistance and BDNF concentration in brain. The present review deals with various biological mechanisms involved in depression co-morbid with obesity and 5-HT3 receptor antagonists by modulation of serotonergic system as a therapeutic target for such co-morbid disorder.

Depressant-like effects of parthenolide in a rodent behavioural antidepressant test battery

The anti-serotonergic effects of parthenolide (PTL) demonstrated in platelets inspired the present psychopharmacological investigation, which employs a battery of rodent behavioural assays of depression. In mice, PTL (0.5-2 mg kg−1) exhibited dose-dependent depressant-like effects in a forced swim test and a tail suspension test, without affecting the baseline locomotor status. The doses (1 and 2 mg kg−1) that induced depressant-like effects were found to significantly reduce 5-hydroxytrypto-phan-induced head twitch response. Interaction studies revealed that the depressant-like effects of PTL (1 mg kg−1) were reversed more efficiently by serotonergic antidepressants (venlafaxine, escitalopram, citalopram, fluoxetine) than by others (desipramine, bupropion) tested. Chronic treatment of PTL (1 and 2 mg kg−1) augmented the hyper-emotionality of olfactory bulbectomized rats, when compared with sham rats, as observed in modified open field, elevated plus maze and social interaction paradigms. This study depicts the severe depressogenic potential of PTL (in its pure form) plausibly mediated by platelet/neuronal hypo-serotonergic effects.

Efficacy of naftidrofuryl in patients with vascular or mixed dementia: results of a multicenter, double-blind trial

BACKGROUND

Dementia is a cerebral disorder resulting in a progressive deterioration of intellectual function that compromises the patient's ability to function. The diagnostic criteria for dementia are primarily clinical and are based on the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition. The Hachinski score and computed tomography of the brain help distinguish between degenerative and vascular dementias.

OBJECTIVE

This study examined the efficacy of naftidrofuryl in patients with vascular or mixed dementia.

METHODS

This multicenter, randomized, double-blind study compared naftidrofuryl 600 mg/d with placebo for 1 year in patients with vascular or mixed dementia. A preliminary 2-month washout period allowed selection of patients who were compliant with treatment. The end point was change in the scores on the Alzheimer Disease Assessment Scale cognitive subscale and the Mini-Mental State Examination.

RESULTS

Eighty-four patients were assessable on an intent-to-treat basis, and 74 were assessable for the per-protocol analysis (on-treatment). Statistically significant improvements in cognitive and global function were observed in patients receiving naftidrofuryl. Naftidrofuryl was well tolerated, and produced no clinically significant abnormalities in laboratory test results.

CONCLUSION

The results of this study suggest that naftidrofuryl is effective and well tolerated in treating the symptoms of vascular and mixed dementia.

Nicotine reverses scopolamine-induced impairment of performance in passive avoidance task in rats through its action on the dopaminergic neuronal system

Interest has recently focused on tobacco and/or nicotine in relation to senile dementia of the Alzheimer type because the population of patients with this disease among tobacco smokers is significantly smaller than in nonsmokers. We investigated whether, in relation to the dopaminergic neuronal system, nicotine was effective in ameliorating the impairment of performance in passive avoidance tasks in rats induced by scopolamine, an inhibitor of muscarinic acetylcholine receptors. Scopolamine and nicotine were coadministered to rats 30 min before the acquisition trial. Some rats received scopolamine alone; they showed much shorter step-through latency (STL) than the control group in the retention test. Nicotine significantly prolonged the decreased STL induced by scopolamine. The effects of nicotine were inhibited by the preadministration of mecamylamine, SCH 23390, and (-)sulpiride, which are nicotinic acetylcholine, D1, and D2 receptor antagonists, respectively. These results suggest that nicotine, by activating the nicotinic acetylcholinergic and dopaminergic neuronal systems, ameliorates the impairment of performance in the passive avoidance task induced by a muscarinic acetylcholine receptor blocker.

Effects of naftidrofuryl oxalate, a 5-HT2 antagonist, on neurotransmission and transduction systems in the gerbil hippocampus

We investigated the effects of age and nafidrofuryl oxalate (Naftidrofuryl), a 5-HT2 antagonist, on neurotransmission and transduction systems in the gerbil hippocampus using quantitative autoradiography. [3H]Quinuclidinyl benzilate (QNB), [3H]cyclohexyl-adenosine (CHA), [3H]MK-801, and [3H]muscimol were used to label muscarinic acetylcholine, adenosine A1, N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA), and gamma-aminobutyric acid-A (GABAA) receptors, respectively. [3H]PN200-110 labeled L-type Ca2+ channels. [3H]Forskolin, [3H]cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP), [3H]phorbol 12,13-dibutyrate (PDBu), and [3H]inositol 1,4,5-triphosphate (IP3) were used to label adenylate cyclase, cAMP-dependent protein kinase, protein kinase C (PKC), and IP3 receptors, respectively. Approximately 20% reductions in [3H]QNB, [3H]forskolin, and [3H]PDBu binding were observed in the hippocampus of 9-month-old gerbils in comparison with 5-week-old gerbils. Treatment with Naftidrofuryl (10 mg/kg, i.p., once a day for 7 days) ameliorated these reductions. No changes were found in [3H]CHA, [3H]MK-801, [3H]muscimol, [3H]PN200-110, [3H]cAMP, and [3H]IP3 binding. The results suggest that Naftidrofuryl may have beneficial effects on the age-related alterations in signal transmission and transduction systems in the brain. Because the acetylcholine system, adenylate cyclase, and PKC are considered to be involved in learning and memory processes, the result may have clinical implications.

Effects of naftidrofuryl oxalate, a 5-HT2 antagonist, on neuronal damage and local cerebral blood flow following transient cerebral ischemia in gerbils

Effects of naftidrofuryl oxalate (naftidrofuryl), a 5-HT2 antagonist, on neuronal damage and local cerebral blood flow was examined in a gerbil model of transient forebrain ischemia. Effect of ketanserin tartrate (ketanserin), another 5-HT2 antagonist, on neuronal damage was also examined. Pretreatment with naftidrofuryl or ketanserin prevented hippocampal CA1 neuronal loss after 5 min of transient ischemia. Naftidrofuryl did not improve hippocampal blood flow during and 1 h after transient ischemia determined by [14C]iodoantipyrine autoradiography but increased blood flow in the caudate-putamen 1 h after transient ischemia. The results show that: (1) the 5-HT2 antagonists protect against hippocampal CA1 neuronal damage; and (2) the protective effect of naftidrofuryl may not be caused by a hemodynamic mechanism but by a direct inhibitory neuromodulation via 5-HT2 antagonistic action.

Similar ameliorating effects of benzomorphans and 5-HT2 antagonists on drug-induced impairment of passive avoidance response in mice: comparison with acetylcholinesterase inhibitors

Mice were trained to avoid electric shocks by means of step-down type passive avoidance learning tasks, and memory retention was measured 24 h after the training session. Memory impairment (amnesia) was produced by administering either p-chloroamphetamine (PCA), a serotonin (5-HT) releaser or scopolamine (SCOP), a muscarinic cholinoceptor antagonist, 30 min prior to the training session. Benzomorphans, 5-HT2 antagonists and acetylcholinesterase (AChE) inhibitors were administered immediately after the training session. PCA- but not SCOP-induced amnesia was attenuated by the post-training administration of two benzomorphans, (+)N-allylnormetazocine ((+)SKF-10,047) and (+/- )pentazocine ((+/- )PTZ). Similarly, PCA-induced amnesia was reversed by the post-training administration of 5-HT2 antagonists, ritanserin (RIT) and mianserin (MIA), but SCOP-induced amnesia was not. However, the AChE inhibitors, tetrahydroaminoacridine (THA) and physostigmine (PHY) attenuated both PCA- and SCOP-induced amnesia when administered immediately after the training session. These results indicated that benzomorphans and 5-HT2 antagonists have antiamnestic effects in mice, as do AChE inhibitors. In addition, it is interesting that the patterns of ameliorating effect of benzomorphans were similar to those of 5-HT2 antagonists, which differ from those of AChE inhibitors.

Postischemic breakdown in hippocampal protein synthesis and mnesic deficits in rats: pharmacological improvement by curative naftidrofuryl treatment

This work was designed to investigate the effects of brain ischemia on mnesic retention in the model of unilateral microsphere embolization in rats. Using various radioactive tracers as well as a learning/memory test, we could correlate following parameters: regional blood flow, protein synthesis and memory retention. All were severely impaired by the hemispheric multi-infarction. A curative treatment with naftidrofuryl (15 mg/kg i.p.) for 3 consecutive days strongly improved the mnesic capacities of the animals, and this effect was corroborated by a marked protective drug action on protein synthesis in the hippocampus. Indeed, studies on valine incorporation into proteins revealed that, despite having no quantitative effect on regional blood flow, naftidrofuryl allowed an almost normal functioning of protein synthesis. As naftidrofuryl had also no direct effect on protein synthesis in the intact contralateral hemisphere, this effect was consequently attributed to the metabolic and/or antiserotoninergic effects of the drug.

Effect of naftidrofuryl oxalate on 5-HT2 receptors in mouse brain: evaluation based on quantitative autoradiography and head-twitch response

The effects of naftidrofuryl oxalate (LS-121) on 5-HT2 receptors in the brain were assessed in mice on the basis of quantitative autoradiography and head-twitch responses. LS-121 inhibited [3H]ketanserin (2 nM) binding in all brain areas assayed in which there were 5-HT2 receptors, such as the frontal cortex, cingulate cortex, parietal cortex, occipital cortex, temporal cortex, nucleus accumbens, caudate-putamen, olfactory tubercle and hippocampus. In the frontal cortex, which has the highest density of 5-HT2 receptors, the Ki value of LS-121 was 6.08 x 10(-8) M. The inhibitory potencies of methysergide and ritanserin for 5-HT2 receptors were about 16- and 60-fold stronger, respectively, than that of LS-121. Moreover, in behavioral studies, LS-121 (12.5-50 mg/kg i.p.) produced dose-dependent and significant inhibitory effects on head twitches induced by 5-hydroxytryptophan (5-HTP) plus pargyline, which is a 5-HT2 receptor-dependent behavior in mice. These results suggest that LS-121 inhibits 5-HTP plus pargyline-induced head twitches by blocking 5-HT2 receptors.