Attenuation of the effects of cocaine on milk consumption in rats by dopamine antagonists

Differential impact of cocaine on meal patterns in female and male rats

Female rats, relative to males, exhibit greater behavioral activation to cocaine and other psychostimulants, but the effect of sex and the estrous cycle in modulating the hypophagic action of cocaine has not been evaluated. Meal patterns were recorded in automated food hoppers during the first 3 h of the dark phase in adult female and male rats after administration of ascending cocaine doses (0, 7.5, and 15 mg/kg cocaine, i.p.) on successive trials. Cocaine produced a greater suppression of feeding as well as a reduction in meal number over a 3 h test period in female rats during estrus, relative to that noted during diestrus. In contrast, during the 180 min test period, male rats showed minimal hypophagic responses to 7.5 or 15 mg/kg cocaine. These results extend the range of behavioral perturbations induced by cocaine that are modulated by sex and by the estrous cycle and are consistent with the notion that estradiol may modulate the neurochemical actions of cocaine.

Effects of ICV administration of the alpha1A-adrenoceptor antagonist 5-methylurapidil on concurrent measures of eating and locomotion after cocaine in the rat

Psychostimulants including amphetamine and cocaine induce locomotion and stereotypy and suppress eating. Although the capacity of cocaine to alter locomotion is usually viewed as related to dopamine neurotransmission, recent studies suggest that norepinephrine, acting through alpha1-adrenergic receptors (alpha1-ARs) can facilitate cocaine-stimulated locomotion. Of the three alpha1-AR subtypes (alpha(1A), alpha(1B), and alpha(1D)) identified to date, inactivation of the alpha(1B)-AR subtype diminishes cocaine-stimulated locomotion, whereas the impact of inactivation of the alpha(1A)-AR subtype on either eating or locomotion is unknown. In the present study, we assessed the relative impact of ICV administration of the alpha(1B)-AR antagonist 5-methylurapidil (5-MU) on cocaine-stimulated hyperlocomotion and hypophagia, using a concurrent method [Wellman, P.J., Ho, D.H., Davis, K.W., 2005. Concurrent measures of feeding and locomotion in rats. Physiology of Behavior 84 (5), 769-774.]. Rats were infused ICV with one of 3 doses of 5-MU (0, 3, or 30 nmol) and then injected (i.p.) with 0, 2.5, 5.0, 10.0, or 20.0 mg/kg cocaine HCl on each of five tests. Rats always received the same 5-MU dose, but a different cocaine dose on each trial. Feeding and locomotion were assessed concurrently during a 45-min postinjection period. Significant suppression of eating was noted at 2.5 mg/kg cocaine, a dose that does not alter forward locomotion in the rat. Administration of 5-MU did not alter locomotion in rats treated with saline, but did significantly increase baseline food intake. Neither cocaine-induced hypophagia nor hyperlocomotion was altered by ICV administration of 5-MU. These results suggest that the capacity of alpha1-AR agonists (e.g. phenylpropanolamine) to suppress eating may be related to activation of the alpha(1A)-AR subtype, whereas cocaine does not act through the alpha(1A)-AR subtype to suppress eating nor does this subtype modulate cocaine-induced hyperlocomotion.

Serotonin and psychostimulant addiction: Focus on 5-HT1A-receptors

Serotonin(1A)-receptors (5-HT(1A)-Rs) are important components of the 5-HT system in the brain. As somatodendritic autoreceptors they control the activity of 5-HT neurons, and, as postsynaptic receptors, the activity in terminal areas. Cocaine (COC), amphetamine (AMPH), methamphetamine (METH) and 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine ("Ecstasy", MDMA) are psychostimulant drugs that can lead to addiction-related behavior in humans and in animals. At the neurochemical level, these psychostimulant drugs interact with monoamine transporters and increase extracellular 5-HT, dopamine and noradrenalin activity in the brain. The increase in 5-HT, which, in addition to dopamine, is a core mechanism of action for drug addiction, hyperactivates 5-HT(1A)-Rs. Here, we first review the role of the various 5-HT(1A)-R populations in spontaneous behavior to provide a background to elucidate the contribution of the 5-HT(1A)-Rs to the organization of psychostimulant-induced addiction behavior. The progress achieved in this field shows the fundamental contribution of brain 5-HT(1A)-Rs to virtually all behaviors associated with psychostimulant addiction. Importantly, the contribution of pre- and postsynaptic 5-HT(1A)-Rs can be dissociated and frequently act in opposite directions. We conclude that 5-HT(1A)-autoreceptors mainly facilitate psychostimulant addiction-related behaviors by a limitation of the 5-HT response in terminal areas. Postsynaptic 5-HT(1A)-Rs, in contrast, predominantly inhibit the expression of various addiction-related behaviors directly. In addition, they may also influence the local 5-HT response by feedback mechanisms. The reviewed findings do not only show a crucial role of 5-HT(1A)-Rs in the control of brain 5-HT activity and spontaneous behavior, but also their complex role in the regulation of the psychostimulant-induced 5-HT response and subsequent addiction-related behaviors.

Cocaine-induced hypophagia and hyperlocomotion in rats are attenuated by prazosin

The present studies examined the effects of antagonizing alpha(1)-adrenoceptors via systemic administration of prazosin on the behavioral actions of cocaine in rats, including induction of locomotion and suppression of eating. In Experiment 1, locomotor activity was monitored in automated chambers for 80 min in adult male rats pretreated with the alpha(1)-adrenoceptor antagonist prazosin (0, 0.5, or 2 mg/kg, i.p.) and then treated (i.p.) with either 0, 10, 20, or 40 mg/kg cocaine hydrochloride. Cocaine dose-dependently increased total distance traveled and the number of stereotypy counts, and significantly decreased rest time. Each dose of prazosin produced a significant attenuation of the locomotor effects of a limited range of cocaine doses (i.e. 10 and/or 20 mg/kg cocaine, but not 40 mg/kg cocaine). Prazosin alone did not alter any measure of locomotion. In Experiment 2, eating and drinking were monitored for 60 min in male rats pretreated with prazosin (0, 1, and 2 mg/kg, i.p.) and then treated with 0, 10, 20, or 40 mg/kg (i.p.) cocaine. Rats pretreated with vehicle exhibited a dose-dependent suppression of eating, but not drinking, to cocaine. The impact of prazosin on cocaine-induced hypophagia paralleled that noted for locomotion in that administration of prazosin significantly attenuated the hypophagic action of 20 mg/kg cocaine, but not that of 40 mg/kg cocaine. These findings confirm earlier studies noting a partial role for alpha(1)-adrenoceptors in the locomotor stimulant actions of cocaine and extend those findings to the feeding-inhibitory actions of cocaine.

Effects of cocaine in pigeons responding under a progressive-ratio schedule of food delivery

Although the progressive-ratio schedule has been used frequently to quantify the reinforcing effectiveness of self-administered drugs, it has seldom been used to examine the effects of drugs on food-maintained behavior and has never been used to evaluate the effects of cocaine on such behavior. In the present study, the effects of acute administrations of cocaine were evaluated in pigeons responding under a progressive-ratio 5 schedule of food delivery that continued for 1 h or until responding ceased for 5 consecutive min, whichever occurred first. The largest ratio completed each session (breaking point) was the primary dependent variable. In general, acute administrations of cocaine at 0.56 to 3.2 mg/kg increased breaking points, whereas doses above 5.6 mg/kg decreased breaking points. Although cocaine reduces food intake and subjective hunger for food, the present data indicate that the drug reduces the reinforcing effectiveness of food only at high doses.

Ondansetron, a selective 5-HT3 receptor antagonist, reduces palatable food consumption in the nondeprived rat

This study investigated the effects of ondansetron, a selective 5-HT3 receptor antagonist, on palatable food consumption in nondeprived male rats, under conditions of familiarity. The results showed that ondansetron (3.0-30 micrograms/kg, i.p.) significantly reduced food intake at each dose tested. The reduction in food intake was due not to a change in the rate of eating but to a reduction in the time spent eating. This, in turn, was due to a reduction in the mean duration of feeding bouts but not due to a change in the frequency of feeding bouts. Hence, the feeding-suppressant effect of ondansetron resulted from a quite specific alteration in the microstructural characteristics of feeding behaviour. In the 60-min observation period, ondansetron did not affect either locomotor activity or rearing, indicating that it did not have general excitatory or behavioural-suppressant effects. Following ondansetron, animals continued to show a typical decline in feeding over time, indicative of the development of within-meal satiety, but the level of feeding was reduced in such a way as to suggest that ondansetron enhances satiety. As a result, as feeding declined, the level of grooming which typically follows the end of feeding, was increased in ondansetron-treated animals. In a supplementary experiment, ondansetron had no effect on deprivation-induced feeding. Present evidence does not allow these data for a 5-HT3 receptor antagonist to be easily accommodated into the major current hypothesis dealing with serotonergic control of feeding responses. Therefore, the role of 5-HT3 receptor-mediated changes in ingestive behaviour requires further investigation.

The selective dopamine uptake inhibitor GBR 12909: its effects on the microstructure of feeding in rats

Previous experiments have investigated the anorectic effects of mazindol and cocaine, both of which can inhibit dopamine (DA) uptake into presynaptic terminals but do not do so selectively. GBR 12909, however, is an example of a potent and selective inhibitor of DA uptake and, therefore, the present study was concerned with investigating its possible effects on feeding behavior in nondeprived rats given access to a sweetened palatable diet. GBR 12909 (5-20 mg/kg, IP) was injected 2 h before a 60 min observation test. It produced a significant reduction in food intake, as a consequence of a reduction in the duration of feeding, without reducing the rate of eating. This anorectic profile is consistent with earlier findings for mazindol and cocaine. The other main behavioral effect of GBR 12909, observed in the present study, was to induce intense sniffing activity, but, unlike cocaine, it did not suppress grooming or induce hyperlocomotion. This selective behavioral effect of GBR 12909 indicates that sniffing can be isolated as one component of a broader array of components typically associated with DA-related stereotyped behavior.

Genotype-specific blockade of cocaine-induced weight loss by the protein synthesis inhibitor, anisomycin

Cocaine has been shown to reduce food intake and body weight in rodents and humans. The results of recent research suggest that de novo protein synthesis in the brain is associated with neuroadaptive changes in the central nervous system. The present study reports the effect of anisomycin, a protein synthesis inhibitor with limited toxicity, on the reduction in body weight resulting from repeated daily injections of cocaine (50 mg/kg) to mice from 7 inbred strains (AKR/J, BALB/cByJ, C3H/HeJ, C57BL/6J, CBA/J, DBA/2J and SJL/J). Repeated cocaine administration resulted in substantial weight loss in all but the BALB strain. Anisomycin (5-30 mg/kg), administered 5 min. prior to each daily cocaine injection, significantly attenuated cocaine-induced weight loss in SJL, C3H and CBA mice. The same treatment, however, had no effect on reduction in body weight in C57, AKR and DBA mice. In BALB mice, neither cocaine, anisomycin alone, nor the coadministration of the two drugs, affected weight gain during the experiment. The results suggest that there is a genotype-specific involvement of protein synthesis associated with cocaine-induced weight loss.

Cocaine: a microstructural analysis of its effects on feeding and associated behaviour in the rat

Cocaine (5.6-30 mg/kg, i.p.) was administered to nondeprived male rats trained to eat a palatable sweetened mash. Over a 60-min period, their behaviour was observed and recorded for a microstructural analysis. Cocaine suppressed feeding in a dose-dependent manner (significantly at 10 mg/kg and greater), and this was due in the main to a reduction in the frequency of eating bouts. In contrast, the mean duration of eating bouts was unaffected, except at the highest dose, 30 mg/kg. In addition, the rate of eating was not significantly affected by cocaine at any dose. Time-course data revealed that cocaine, at anorectic doses (10-30 mg/kg), initially suppressed feeding completely, and the duration of this suppression was proportional to the dose. In effect, cocaine delayed the initiation of feeding, thus bringing about the reduction in the number of eating bouts. Cocaine caused some stimulation of locomotor activity and rearing to the side of the observation tank, but did not affect rearing away from the centre, or immobility. Grooming proved to be very sensitive to cocaine's suppressant effect, with substantial inhibition occurring at 5.6 mg/kg (a sub-anorectic dose). These data are compared with previously published work with D-amphetamine and are contrasted with results for selective D1 and D2 dopamine receptor agonists.

Differential antagonism of the effects of dopamine D1-receptor agonists on feeding behavior in the rat

A series of experiments was conducted to examine the effects of dopamine D1 receptor agonists on food intake in rats. In the first experiment, the D1 agonist SKF 38393 (3.0-30.0 mg/kg) dose-dependently suppressed feeding during a 40 min food-access period, both in food-deprived rats and in non-deprived rats fed a highly palatable diet. Non-deprived rats were more sensitive to these effects of SKF 38393. Using the limited-access, food-deprivation procedure, a comparison was made between the anorectic effects of three D1 agonists with differing intrinsic efficacies and receptor selectivities. Rank order of potencies for reducing food intake was SKF 82958 > SKF 77434 > SKF 38393 (ED50 values: 0.7, 3.6 and 15.7 mg/kg, respectively). Dose-related, surmountable antagonism by the D1 antagonist SCH 23390 (0.01 and 0.03 mg/kg) was only obtained with SKF 82958 (0.1-10.0 mg/kg). In contrast to the other compounds, the effects of SKF 38393 were not appreciably altered by the D1 antagonist. The effects of SKF 82958 were also antagonized by the D2 receptor antagonist spiperone (0.05 and 0.1 mg/kg), although not in a dose-dependent manner. The present results support a role for D1 receptors in central feeding mechanisms. They also suggest that the effects of SKF 38393 on feeding may not be mediated exclusively by the D1 receptor and, further, that SKF 38393 may not serve well in behavioral studies as a prototypical D1 agonist. The results also demonstrate the need for comparisons among several compounds in studies of D1 mediated behavioral effects.