Involvement of serotonin1A receptors in cardiovascular responses to stress: a radio-telemetry study in four rat strains

More efficient adaptation of cardiovascular response to repeated restraint in spontaneously hypertensive rats: the role of autonomic nervous system

We hypothesized that sympathetic hyperactivity and parasympathetic insuficiency in spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR) underlie their exaggerated cardiovascular response to acute stress and impaired adaptation to repeated restraint stress exposure compared to Wistar-Kyoto rats (WKY). Cardiovascular responses to single (120 min) or repeated (daily 120 min for 1 week) restraint were measured by radiotelemetry and autonomic balance was evaluated by power spectral analysis of systolic blood pressure variability (SBPV) and heart rate variability (HRV). Baroreflex sensitivity (BRS) was measured by the pharmacological Oxford technique. Stress-induced pressor response and vascular sympathetic activity (low-frequency component of SBPV) were enhanced in SHR subjected to single restraint compared to WKY, whereas stress-induced tachycardia was similar in both strains. SHR exhibited attenuated cardiac parasympathetic activity (high-frequency component of HRV) and blunted BRS compared to WKY. Repeated restraint did not affect the stress-induced increase in blood pressure. However, cardiovascular response during the post-stress recovery period of the 7th restraint was reduced in both strains. The repeatedly restrained SHR showed lower basal heart rate during the dark (active) phase and slightly decreased basal blood pressure during the light phase compared to stress-naive SHR. SHR subjected to repeated restraint also exhibited attenuated stress-induced tachycardia, augmented cardiac parasympathetic activity, attenuated vascular sympathetic activity and improved BRS during the last seventh restraint compared to single-stressed SHR. Thus, SHR exhibited enhanced cardiovascular and sympathetic responsiveness to novel stressor exposure (single restraint) compared to WKY. Unexpectedly, the adaptation of cardiovascular and autonomic responses to repeated restraint was more effective in SHR.

Effects of new generation triptans - frovatriptan and almotriptan - on hemodynamic parameters in intact male and female rats

The introduction of the second generation triptans in clinical and experimental practice was a major progress in the pharmacotherapy of migraine. Frovatriptan is a second generation triptan with strong 5-HT1B/1D serotonergic agonism and low 5-HT1A/7 receptor affinity, while almotriptan possesses not only the typical 5-HT1B/1D receptor agonist activity, but shows an affinity to the 5-HT1F receptor. The aim of our study was to assess the impact of frovatriptan and almotriptan on hemodynamics in male and female rats. We used a non-invasive "tail-cuff" method to measure the arterial blood pressure. Female and male Wistar rats were treated separately with high and low dosages of frovatriptan and almotriptan. Male and female rats showed reduction in all hemodynamic parameters, but only male rats showed an increase in the heart rate. In general, we could say that both almotriptan and frovatriptan potentiate cardiovascular safety.

Prevention of duodenal ileus reveals functional differences in the duodenal response to luminal hypertonicity in Sprague-Dawley and Dark Agouti rats

AIM

The mechanism by which the duodenum adjusts the luminal osmolality remains unclear. The aim was to compare the duodenal osmoregulation in response to different hyperosmolar solutions in Sprague-Dawley and Dark Agouti rats and to elucidate whether cyclooxygenase-2 inhibition affects these responses.

METHODS

The duodenum was perfused in situ with a 700-milliosmolar solution (NaCl alone, D-glucose ± NaCl, D-mannitol ± NaCl or orange juice), and the effects on the duodenal motility, mucosal permeability, luminal alkalinization, fluid flux and osmoregulation were assessed in anaesthetized rats.

RESULTS

The change in net fluid flux and luminal osmolality, in response to a given hyperosmolar solution, was almost identical in control rats of both strains. In control rats, hypertonic D-glucose-NaCl induced fluid secretion only in the presence of phlorizin, an inhibitor of SGLT1. Cyclooxygenase-2 inhibition potentiated the hypertonicity-induced fluid secretion and increased the osmolality-adjusting capability in both strains, but the responses were greater in Dark Agouti rats. While cyclooxygenase-2-inhibited Dark Agouti rats responded to the hyperosmolar solutions with depression of motility and increased mucosal permeability, these effects were absent or smaller in the Sprague-Dawley strain. In contrast, orange juice induced the same duodenal responses in cyclooxygenase-2-inhibited Dark Agouti and Sprague-Dawley rats.

CONCLUSION

The duodenum possesses the ability to absorb fluid despite a very high luminal osmolality. Inhibition of cyclooxygenase-2 markedly enhanced the capability of the duodenum to secrete fluid and to decrease luminal osmolality, irrespective of the hyperosmolar solution or the rat strain used, and revealed notable differences between the two strains with regard to their osmolality-adjusting capability.

5-HT(1A) receptor: an old target as a new attractive tool in drug discovery from central nervous system to cancer

The serotonin receptor subtype 5-HT(1A) was one of the first serotonin receptor subtypes pharmacologically characterized. This receptor subtype has long been object of intense research and is implicated in the pathogenesis and treatment of anxiety and depressive disorders. In recent years, new chemical entities targeting the 5-HT(1A) receptor (alone or in combination with other molecular targets) have been proposed for novel therapeutic uses in neuroprotection, cognitive impairment, Parkinson's disease, pain treatment, malignant carcinoid syndrome, and prostate cancer. This Perspective compares existing data on expression and signaling activity of the 5-HT(1A) receptor to a ligand with an intrinsic agonist or antagonist profile. Our purpose is also to make a complete overview, useful for underlining the features needed to select a specific pharmacological profile rather than another one. This aspect could be really interesting to consider and justify the 5-HT(1A) receptor as a new attractive target for drug discovery.

Inhibitory effects of sigma-1 ligands on handling-induced tachycardia in conscious tethered rats

We used conscious tethered Sprague-Dawley rats to evaluate the cardiovascular effects of four sigma-1 (σ1 ) agonists and five antagonists, given alone or in combination. All drugs were administered as a single intraperitoneal dose. The agonists were given at doses reported as efficacious in rodent cognition models, while the antagonists were administered at doses neutralizing agonist effects in vivo. Systolic blood pressure (SBP) and heart rate (HR) were continuously recorded for 20 min before and 60 min postadministration. Immediately after injection, a sudden, transitory increase in HR and SBP was noted in all animals, because of the stress induced by handling. For both parameters, a peak value (ΔHRmax and ΔSBPmax ) and an area under the curve of changes from baseline over the period 5-20 min postinjection (ΔHR_AUC5-20 min and ΔSBP_AUC5-20 min ) were calculated. Three of the four σ1 agonists (SKF-10,047, dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEAS), Compound 14) significantly reduced ΔHR_AUC5-20 min value without changing ΔHRmax , while the fourth one, SA-4503, had no significant effect. None of the antagonists (haloperidol, rimcazole, NE-100, and BD1047) reduced, and even one (progesterone) enhanced the stress-induced effects on HR. No changes in SBP were noted with any compound. When the antagonist NE-100 was administered just before SKF-10,047, it completely reversed the inhibitory effects of the σ1 agonist on HR increase. In conclusion, we demonstrated for the first time the involvement of σ1 receptors in the regulation of handling-induced tachycardia in the conscious rat. Although additional investigations are needed to fully understand this role, it might offer new therapeutic perspectives to σ1 ligands in the cardiovascular sphere.

Stress-induced susceptibility to sudden cardiac death in mice with altered serotonin homeostasis

In humans, chronic stressors have long been linked to cardiac morbidity. Altered serotonergic neurotransmission may represent a crucial pathophysiological mechanism mediating stress-induced cardiac disturbances. Here, we evaluated the physiological role of serotonin (5-HT) 1A receptors in the autonomic regulation of cardiac function under acute and chronic stress conditions, using 5-HT_1A receptor knockout mice (KOs). When exposed to acute stressors, KO mice displayed a higher tachycardic stress response and a larger reduction of vagal modulation of heart rate than wild type counterparts (WTs). During a protocol of chronic psychosocial stress, 6 out of 22 (27%) KOs died from cardiac arrest. Close to death, they displayed a severe bradycardia, a lengthening of cardiac interval (P wave, PQ and QRS) duration, a notched QRS complex and a profound hypothermia. In the same period, the remaining knockouts exhibited higher values of heart rate than WTs during both light and dark phases of the diurnal rhythm. At sacrifice, KO mice showed a larger expression of cardiac muscarinic receptors (M2), whereas they did not differ for gross cardiac anatomy and the amount of myocardial fibrosis compared to WTs. This study demonstrates that chronic genetic loss of 5-HT_1A receptors is detrimental for cardiovascular health, by intensifying acute, stress-induced heart rate rises and increasing the susceptibility to sudden cardiac death in mice undergoing chronic stress.

Serotonin and blood pressure regulation

5-Hydroxytryptamine (5-HT; serotonin) was discovered more than 60 years ago as a substance isolated from blood. The neural effects of 5-HT have been well investigated and understood, thanks in part to the pharmacological tools available to dissect the serotonergic system and the development of the frequently prescribed selective serotonin-reuptake inhibitors. By contrast, our understanding of the role of 5-HT in the control and modification of blood pressure pales in comparison. Here we focus on the role of 5-HT in systemic blood pressure control. This review provides an in-depth study of the function and pharmacology of 5-HT in those tissues that can modify blood pressure (blood, vasculature, heart, adrenal gland, kidney, brain), with a focus on the autonomic nervous system that includes mechanisms of action and pharmacology of 5-HT within each system. We compare the change in blood pressure produced in different species by short- and long-term administration of 5-HT or selective serotonin receptor agonists. To further our understanding of the mechanisms through which 5-HT modifies blood pressure, we also describe the blood pressure effects of commonly used drugs that modify the actions of 5-HT. The pharmacology and physiological actions of 5-HT in modifying blood pressure are important, given its involvement in circulatory shock, orthostatic hypotension, serotonin syndrome and hypertension.

The SHR Y chromosome increases cardiovascular, endocrine, and behavioral responses to stress compared to the WKY Y chromosome

The SHR Y chromosome has loci which are involved with behavioral, endocrine and brain phenotypes and respond to acute stress to a different degree than that of the WKY Y chromosome. The objectives were to determine if WKY males with an SHR Y chromosome (SHR/y) when compared to males with a WKY Y chromosome would have: 1. a greater increase in systolic and diastolic blood pressures (BP), heart rate (HR), and locomotor activity when placed in an open field environment and during an acute stress procedure; 2. enhanced stress hormone responses; 3. greater voluntary running; and 4. increased brain Sry expression. The SHR/y strain showed a significant rise in BP (32%) and HR (10%) during the open field test and exhibited higher BP (46% change) during air jet stress. SHR/y had higher locomotor activity and less immobility and had increased stress induced plasma norepinephrine and adrenocorticotrophic hormone and 3-4× more voluntary running compared to WKY. Differential Sry expression between WKY and SHR/y in amygdala and hippocampus was altered at rest and during acute stress more than that of WKY. Evidence suggests that this animal model allows novel functions of Y chromosome loci to be revealed. In conclusion, a transcription factor on the SHR Y chromosome, Sry, may be responsible for the cardiovascular, endocrine and behavioral phenotype differences between SHR/y and WKY males.

Activation of 5-hydroxytryptamine-1A receptors suppresses cardiovascular responses evoked from the paraventricular nucleus

Activation of central 5-hydroxytryptamine-1A (5-HT1A) receptors powerfully inhibits stress-evoked cardiovascular responses mediated by the dorsomedial hypothalamus (DMH), as well as responses evoked by direct activation of neurons within the DMH. The hypothalamic paraventricular nucleus (PVN) also has a crucial role in cardiovascular regulation and is believed to regulate heart rate and renal sympathetic activity via pathways that are independent of the DMH. In this study, we determined whether cardiovascular responses evoked from the PVN are also modulated by activation of central 5-HT1A receptors. In anesthetized rats, the increases in heart rate and renal sympathetic nerve activity evoked by bicuculline injection into the PVN were greatly reduced (by 54% and 61%, respectively) by intravenous administration of (±)-8-hydroxy-2-(di-n-propylamino)tetralin (8-OH-DPAT), an agonist of 5-HT1A receptors, but were then completely restored by subsequent administration of WAY-100635, a selective antagonist of 5-HT1A receptors. Microinjection of 8-OH-DPAT directly into the PVN did not significantly affect the responses to bicuculline injection into the PVN, nor did systemic administration of WAY-100635 alone. In control experiments, a large renal sympathoexcitatory response was evoked from both the PVN and DMH but not from the intermediate region in between; thus the evoked responses from the PVN were not due to activation of neurons in the DMH. The results indicate that activation of central 5-HT1A receptors located outside the PVN powerfully inhibits the tachycardia and renal sympathoexcitation evoked by stimulation of neurons in the PVN.

Inhibition of the cardiovascular response to stress by systemic 5-HT1A activation: sympathoinhibition or anxiolysis?

5-HT1A agonists given systemically are known to produce anxiolytic effects. In addition, a growing body of research is showing that those compounds also have central sympathoinhibitory properties. Since emotional arousal gives rise to sympathetic activation, it is not clear whether systemic treatment with a 5-HT1A agonist reduces the sympathetic response to emotional stress primarily by a direct action on sympathetic-related sites in the brain or indirectly through reducing anxiety. To test this, we compared the effect of intraperitoneal injections of 8-hydroxy-2-(di-n-propylamino)tetralin (8-OH-DPAT; 0.05 and 0.25 mg/kg), a preferential 5-HT1A agonist, or vehicle on the cardiovascular responses to four stressors known to produce sympathetic activation, three being emotional stressors, and one physiological. In conscious rats, 30-min exposure to either a neutral context, a fear-conditioned context, or to restraint stress led to increases in heart rate and blood pressure, which were attenuated by 8-OH-DPAT. In contrast, the same treatment did not reduce the cardiovascular response to 30-min cold exposure (4°C). The results suggest that 8-OH-DPAT acts preferentially on limbic, rather than central, autonomic sites. Hence, doses of 5-HT1A agonists, which are just sufficient to produce anxiolysis, are not enough to cause true sympathoinhibition.

Role of serotonin-1A receptors in the action of antipsychotic drugs: comparison of prepulse inhibition studies in mice and rats and relevance for human pharmacology

This study aimed to explore strain and species differences in the involvement of 5-HT1A receptors in the action of antipsychotic drugs, using prepulse inhibition (PPI), a model of sensory processing which is deficient in schizophrenia patients. We used automated startle boxes to compare the effect of the 5-HT1A receptor agonist, (+/-)-8-hydroxy-dipropyl-amino-tetralin (8-OH-DPAT), on PPI in three mouse strains. Balb/c mice were then pretreated with antipsychotics, treated with 8-OH-DPAT or saline, and tested for PPI. 8-OH-DPAT treatment dose dependently increased PPI in Balb/c mice, but had less effect in 129Sv and C57Bl/6 mice. In Balb/c mice, the effect of 8-OH-DPAT was blocked by the typical antipsychotic and dopamine D2 receptor antagonist, haloperidol and the third generation antipsychotic, aripiprazole, which has activity at both 5-HT1A and dopamine D2 receptors. The atypical antipsychotics, clozapine, olanzapine and risperidone, had lesser effects. Similar to our earlier studies in rats, the present PPI results suggest that 5-HT1A receptors are involved in the action of some antipsychotic drugs in mice. Despite strain and species differences in the magnitude and direction of the effect of 8-OH-DPAT, downstream dopamine D2 receptor activation seems to be an important mediator. These comparative results allow a theoretical framework of receptor interactions, which may guide further studies on the involvement of 5-HT1A receptors in schizophrenia.

Central 5-HT receptors in cardiovascular control during stress

Our aim is to consolidate recent data on relationship between central serotonergic neurotransmission and stress-elicited cardiovascular changes. Activation of central of 5-HT1A receptors attenuates tachycardic and pressor changes elicited by a wide range of stressors (airjet, restraint, open field, fear conditioning, social defeat), supporting the previous view of these receptors as "sympathoinhibitory". Their likely location is the medullary raphe. It is still unknown whether 5-TH1A receptors are sympathoinhibitory in physiological condition, as 5-HT1A antagonists do not affect basal or stress-altered cardiovascular parameters. In contrast to the established view that central 5-HT2A receptors are "sympathoexcitatory", experiments with new selective antagonists indicate that these receptors do not mediate stress-induced pressor and tachycardic responses, and are not involved in cardiovascular control at rest. The exception is control of cutaneous vascular bed, both at rest and during stress, likely at the spinal level. 5-HT3 receptors located in the nucleus tractus silitarius (NTS) contribute to stress-induced suppression of the baroreflex. 5-HT3 receptors located in sympathetic ganglia possibly contribute to the development of sustained hypertension in chronically stressed rats.

Selective blockade of 5-HT2A receptors attenuates the increased temperature response in brown adipose tissue to restraint stress in rats

Previous studies have demonstrated that 5-HT2A receptors may be involved in the central control of thermoregulation and of the cardiovascular system. Our aim was to test whether these receptors mediate thermogenic and tachycardiac responses induced by acute psychological stress. Three groups of adult male Hooded Wistar rats were instrumented with: (i) a thermistor in the interscapular area (for recording brown adipose tissue temperature) and an ultrasound Doppler probe (to record tail blood flow); (ii) temperature dataloggers to record core body temperature; (iii) ECG electrodes. On the day of the experiment, rats were subjected to a 30-min restraint stress preceded by s.c. injection of either vehicle or SR-46349B (a serotonin 2A receptor antagonist) at doses of 0.01, 0.1 and 1.0 mg/kg. The restraint stress caused a rise in brown adipose tissue temperature (from, mean +/- s.e.m., 36.6 +/- 0.2 to 38.0 +/- 0.2 degrees C), transient cutaneous vasoconstriction (tail blood flow decreased from 12 +/- 2 to 5 +/- 1 cm/s), increase in heart rate (from 303 +/- 15 to 453 +/- 15 bpm at the peak, then reduced to 393 +/- 12 bpm at the steady state), and defaecation (6 +/- 1 pellets per restraint session). The core body temperature was not affected by the restraint. Blockade of 5-HT2A receptors attenuated the increase in brown adipose tissue temperature and transient cutaneous vasoconstriction, but not tachycardia and defaecation elicited by restraint stress. These results indicate that psychological stress causes activation of 5-HT2A receptors in neural pathways that control thermogenesis in the brown adipose tissue and facilitate cutaneous vasoconstriction.

Activation of 5-HT(1A) receptors attenuates tachycardia induced by restraint stress in rats

To better understand the central mechanisms that mediate increases in heart rate (HR) during psychological stress, we examined the effects of systemic and intramedullary (raphe region) administration of the serotonin-1A (5-HT(1A)) receptor agonist 8-hydroxy-2-(di-n-propylamino)tetraline (8-OH-DPAT) on cardiac changes elicited by restraint in hooded Wistar rats with preimplanted ECG telemetric transmitters. 8-OH-DPAT reduced basal HR from 356 +/- 12 to 284 +/- 12 beats/min, predominantly via a nonadrenergic, noncholinergic mechanism. Restraint stress caused tachycardia (an initial transient increase from 318 +/- 3 to 492 +/- 21 beats/min with a sustained component of 379 +/- 12 beats/min). beta-Adrenoreceptor blockade with atenolol suppressed the sustained component, whereas muscarinic blockade with methylscopolamine (50 microg/kg) abolished the initial transient increase, indicating that sympathetic activation and vagal withdrawal were responsible for the tachycardia. Systemic administration of 8-OH-DPAT (10, 30, and 100 microg/kg) attenuated stress-induced tachycardia in a dose-dependent manner, and this effect was suppressed by the 5-HT(1A) antagonist WAY-100635 (100 microg/kg). Given alone, the antagonist had no effect. Systemically injected 8-OH-DPAT (100 microg/kg) attenuated the sympathetically mediated sustained component (from +85 +/- 19 to +32 +/- 9 beats/min) and the vagally mediated transient (from +62 +/- 5 to +25 +/- 3 beats/min). Activation of 5-HT(1A) receptors in the medullary raphe by microinjection of 8-OH-DPAT mimicked the antitachycardic effect of the systemically administered drug but did not affect basal HR. We conclude that tachycardia induced by restraint stress is due to a sustained increase in cardiac sympathetic activity associated with a transient vagal withdrawal. Activation of central 5-HT(1A) receptors attenuates this tachycardia by suppressing autonomic effects. At least some of the relevant receptors are located in the medullary raphe-parapyramidal area.

Development of a home cage locomotor tracking system capable of detecting the stimulant and sedative properties of drugs in rats

The advent of automated locomotor activity methodologies has been extremely useful in removing the subjectivity and bias out of measuring this parameter in rodents. However, many of these behavioural studies are still conducted in novel environments, rather than in ones that the animals are familiar with, such as their home cage. The purpose of the present series of experiments was to develop an automated home cage tracking (HCT) profile using EthoVision software and assessing the acute effects of stimulant (amphetamine and methamphetamine, 0-5 mg/kg, sc) and sedative (diazepam, 0-20 mg/kg, sc and chlordiazepoxide, 0-50 mg/kg sc) drugs in this apparatus. Young adult male Sprague-Dawley rats were used, and the home cage locomotor activity was recorded for 11-60 min following administration (n=4 per group). For amphetamine and methamphetamine, a dose-dependent increase in home cage activity was evident for both drugs, with a plateau, followed by reduction at higher doses. Methamphetamine was more potent, whereas amphetamine produced greater maximal responses. Both diazepam and chlordiazepoxide dose-dependently reduced locomotor activity, with diazepam exhibiting a greater potency and having stronger sedative effects than chlordiazepoxide. Three doses of each drug were selected at the 31-40 min time period following administration, and compared to open field responses. Diazepam, chlordiazepoxide and amphetamine did not produce significant changes in the open field, whilst methamphetamine produced a significant increase in the 2.5 mg/kg group. In conclusion, these studies have successfully developed a sensitive HCT methodology that has been validated using drugs with stimulant and sedative properties in the same test conditions, with relatively small numbers of animals required to produce statistically significant results. It has proven superior to the open field investigations in allowing dose-response effects to be observed over a relatively short observation period (i.e. 10 min) for both stimulants and sedatives. In addition, the HCT system can determine differences in potency and efficacy between drugs of a similar chemical class.

3,4-Methylenedioxymethamphetamine- and 8-hydroxy-2-di-n-propylamino-tetralin-induced hypothermia: role and location of 5-hydroxytryptamine 1A receptors

The popular drug of abuse 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) has complex interactions with thermoregulatory systems, resulting in either hyperthermia or hypothermia. MDMA induces hypothermia when given to animals housed at a low ambient temperature. In this study we report that MDMA (7.5 mg/kg i.p.) given at normal ambient temperatures of 24 to 25 degrees C caused, in conscious freely moving rats, hypothermia (mean decrease from baseline of 1.1 +/- 0.06 degrees C at 40 min). Pretreating animals with a 0.5 mg/kg i.p. dose of the 5-hydroxytryptamine 1A (5-HT(1A)) antagonist N-[2-[4-(2-methoxyphenyl)-1-piperazinyl]ethyl]-N-2-pyridinylcyclohexanecarboxamide (WAY 100635) not only prevented MDMA-induced hypothermia, but resulted in the development of hyperthermia (mean temperature increase from baseline of 0.74 +/- 0.2 degrees C at 120 min). After treatment with WAY 100635, MDMA also elicited an enhanced tachycardia (mean increases in heart rate from baseline of 110 +/- 16 beats/min at 90 min). To identify the location of 5-HT(1A) receptors responsible for hypothermia induced by MDMA, we first investigated the role of 5-HT(1A) receptors in the rostral raphe pallidus (rRP) in decreases in temperature evoked by the known 5-HT(1A) agonist 8-hydroxy-2-di-n-propylamino-tetralin (DPAT). Microinjections of 0.5 nmol of WAY 100635 into the rRP significantly attenuated DPAT (0.2 mg/kg i.p.)-elicited hypothermia. In parallel experiments, we found that microinjections of WAY 100635 into the rRP, while significantly augmenting MDMA-mediated tachycardia, did not alter body temperature. These results demonstrate that although hypothermia mediated by both MDMA and DPAT shares a common dependence on the activation of 5-HT(1A) receptors, the location of these receptors is different for each drug.

Rat strain-related differences in myocardial adrenergic tone and the impact on cardiac fibrosis, adrenergic responsiveness and myocardial structure and function

Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats have been reported to have a higher sympathetic activity than Wistar-Kyoto (WKY) rats. In the present study we sought to determine if these rat strain-related differences in sympathetic activity exist at a myocardial level and whether they translate into changes in cardiac fibrosis, contractile responsiveness to adrenergic agonists, and cardiac structure and function. Coronary effluent noradrenaline concentrations, as determined in isolated, perfused heart preparations, were higher in 5-month-old SD as compared to age-matched WKY male rats. This difference was accompanied by higher resting heart rates in SD rats as assessed in vivo. However, increases in myocardial noradrenaline release in SD rats did not translate into enhanced myocardial fibrosis, cardiac hypertrophy or remodeling, changes in basal ventricular systolic and diastolic function, or to down-regulation of inotropic responses to the beta-adrenoreceptor agonists, noradrenaline, isoproterenol and dobutamine. Although age-matched male SD rats were heavier, no differences in absolute heart weights were noted between rat strains. Moreover, left ventricular (LV) posterior wall thickness as assessed by echocardiography, as well as cardiac myocyte dimensions as determined by laser scanning confocal microscopy were similar between rat strains. Furthermore, LV internal diameters as determined in vivo, as well as LV diastolic volume intercept determined in isolated, perfused heart preparations were similar between rat strains. Increases in myocardial noradrenaline release in SD rats also did not translate into differences in LV systolic chamber and myocardial function as assessed in vivo (LV endocardial and midwall fractional shortening) and at controlled loads and heart rates ex vivo (the slope of the LV developed pressure-volume relation determined). Likewise, neither myocardial hydroxyproline content nor LV chamber stiffness as assessed by the slope of the LV end-diastolic pressure-volume relation were different in SD and WKY rats. In conclusion, rat strain-related differences in cardiac adrenergic tone do indeed exist, but in young animals these differences do not translate into cardiac phenotypes known to contribute to progressive cardiac dysfunction.

5-HT1ARECEPTORS IN STRESS-INDUCED CARDIAC CHANGES: A POSSIBLE LINK BETWEEN MENTAL AND CARDIAC DISORDERS

1. Mental disorders associated with chronic stressors are established risk factors for cardiac morbidity and mortality, but there is no satisfactory explanation of the mechanistic link between mental and cardiac disorders. 2. The present article presents the hypothesis suggesting that abnormal functioning of serotonin 5-HT(1A) receptors in the lower brain stem may represent this missing link. Currently available data suggest that there may be a global downregulation of 5-HT(1A) receptors in depressive and panic patients. 3. Recent animal results indicate that 5-HT(1A) receptors, located in the medullary raphe, possibly on the raphe-spinal presympathetic cardiomotor neurons, reduce stress-elicited activation of these neurons. 4. Decreased density/function of 5-H(1A) receptors in the raphe area (possibly occurring during chronic stress/depression) may lead to increased sympathetic outflow to the heart and, consequently, to the increase in noradrenalin release from the cardiac sympathetic nerve terminals.

Oestrogen modulation of the effect of 8-OH-DPAT on prepulse inhibition: effects of aromatase deficiency and castration in mice

OBJECTIVE

The aim of this study was to investigate the interaction of sex steroid hormones, particularly oestrogen, in the regulation of prepulse inhibition (PPI) by serotonin-1A (5-HT1A) receptors.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

We studied aromatase knockout (ArKO) mice, which are unable to produce oestrogen but have high levels of testosterone, and the effects of castration.

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

Treatment of male ArKO mice with the 5-HT1A receptor agonist, 8-hydroxy-dipropyl-aminotetralin (8-OH-DPAT), caused an increase in PPI that was significantly greater than in male wild-type controls. Castration of male mice caused a significant enhancement of the effect of 8-OH-DPAT in control mice; however, there was no change in the effect of this drug in ArKO mice. There was no significant effect of 8-OH-DPAT on PPI in either female ArKO or wild-type controls. In all experiments, the effects of 8-OH-DPAT on startle were not different between the groups. [3H]8-OH-DPAT autoradiography showed no differences in 5-HT1A receptor binding densities in areas of the forebrain, hippocampus or raphe region that could explain the PPI results. These data show that the absence of oestrogen in male ArKO mice leads to a greater effect of 5-HT1A receptor stimulation on PPI. This effect can be mimicked in male control mice by castration. The differential involvement of oestrogen and testosterone in these animal models is discussed.

Monoamine and motor responses to cocaine are co-deficient in the Fawn-Hooded depressed animal model

The Fawn-Hooded (FH) genetic animal model of depression continues to be of interest because the FH model has limited biochemical and immune function. The FH animal has an inherited trait, platelet storage pool deficiency (PSPD), an hemorrhagic disorder that is also a component of Chediak-Higashi syndrome (CHS). CHS is a pyrogenic infectious childhood disease; few patients live past the age of 20. Our hypothesis was that FH animals may exhibit different monoamine and motor responses to cocaine versus the Sprague-Dawley (SD) "normal" animal strain, which does not have the FH trait. Therefore, selective neuromolecular imaging (NMI) of the monoamines, dopamine (DA) and 5-HT within nucleus accumbens (NAcc) of behaving male FH versus SD rats was performed in vivo with BRODERICK PROBE sensors and a semiderivative voltammetric circuit. Each animal was placed in a faraday chamber and electrochemical signals were detected via a mercury commutator and flexible cable. Baseline values for neurotransmitters and behavior were derived during the last half-hour of habituation behavior. Release of DA and 5-HT was detected selectively, at separate oxidation potentials, within seconds, before and after intraperitoneal administration of the psychostimulant, cocaine (10 mg/kg). At the same time, frequencies of ambulations and central ambulations were separately monitored with infrared photobeams, which surrounded the faraday chamber. Data were compared by ANOVA analysis followed by Tukey's post hoc test. The data showed that (1) DA release in NAcc of behaving FH animals did not respond to cocaine; neither first hour nor second hour values significantly differed from baseline (both hours, p>0.05), whereas SD animals exhibited a significant increase in cocaine-induced DA release in NAcc (both hours, p<0.001). The ability for acute cocaine to increase DA release in NAcc was significantly greater in SD than in FH animals (p<0.001). (2) 5-HT release in NAcc of behaving FH animals was not significantly increased by cocaine (both hours, p>0.05), whereas 5-HT release in NAcc of SD animals was significantly increased after cocaine (both hours, p<0.001). The ability for acute cocaine to increase 5-HT release was significantly greater in SD than in FH animals (p<0.001). (3) Ambulations in the FH strain were modestly, yet significantly, enhanced after cocaine during both hours of study (p<0.05, p<0.001, respectively) as were ambulations in the SD strain. Nonetheless, the ability for acute cocaine to increase ambulations was significantly greater in SD than in FH animals in the first hour (p<0.001). (4) Central ambulations in the FH strain was not affected by cocaine (both hours, p>0.05), whereas SD animals showed a significant increase in central ambulatory activity in both hours of the cocaine study (p<0.001). The ability for acute cocaine to increase central ambulations was significantly greater in SD than in FH animals (p<0.001). Thus, this is the first study to determine in vivo the neurochemical response to acute cocaine in the behaving FH animal. Moreover, this is the first study to determine in vivo and simultaneously the neurochemical and behavioral response to acute cocaine in the FH strain in comparison with SD animals, a "normal" strain. Remarkable deficiencies in the ability for acute cocaine to alter neurochemistry and behavior in animals with the FH trait are shown. These studies emphasize the need to look differentially at cocaine effects in biochemically and immune-compromised subjects versus "normal" subjects.