The Journal of pharmacology and experimental therapeutics
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J. Pharmacol. Exp. Ther. · Sep 1993
Comparative StudyProstaglandin E2-induced thermal hyperalgesia and its reversal by morphine in the warm-water tail-withdrawal procedure in rhesus monkeys.
Four monkeys were seated in primate restraint chairs and the terminal 10 cm of their shaved tails were dipped into water maintained at a series of temperatures ranging from 38-54 degrees C. The latency to tail withdrawal from several temperatures was measured and temperature-effect curves for each monkey were generated. When administered s.c. into the tail, prostaglandin E2 (PGE2; 0, 1.58, 5.0 and 15.8 micrograms) produced a dose-dependent hyperalgesia manifested as dose-dependent leftward shifts in the temperature-effect curves. ⋯ The hyperalgesic effects of PGE2 were reversed potently by morphine (0.32-3.2 mg/kg), and the effects of morphine were antagonized in a surmountable manner by both the opioid antagonist quadazocine (0.1 mg/kg) and by systemic administration of the charged opioid antagonist quaternary naltrexone (3.2 mg/kg). These results indicate that PGE2 produces thermal hyperalgesia in rhesus monkeys and also suggests that this hyperalgesia may be reversed by activation of peripheral opioid receptors. PGE2-induced hyperalgesia in the warm-water tail-withdrawal procedure may provide a useful assay for evaluating the effects of pharmacological and nonpharmacological treatments on hyperalgesia associated with inflammation in primates.
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J. Pharmacol. Exp. Ther. · Aug 1993
Divergent alterations in gamma-aminobutyric acid responses of male and ovariectomized rats after chronic benzodiazepine agonist exposure: analysis of gamma-aminobutyric acid-activated chloride influx.
Gonadal status in rats modulates the development of tolerance to the anticonvulsant effects of the benzodiazepines and the concomitant changes in cortical gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA)A receptors after chronic benzodiazepine agonist exposure. The present study analyzed physiological GABA responsiveness after chronic benzodiazepine exposure by measuring GABA-activation of 36chloride influx into cortical and cerebellar microsacs. GABA-stimulated 36chloride influx was compared in groups of male and ovariectomized female rats after acute (2-3 day) or chronic (3 week) exposure to diazepam-filled or empty silastic implants. ⋯ Enhancement of GABA-stimulated 36chloride influx by the benzodiazepine agonist midazolam was not altered in male or ovariectomized rats after chronic diazepam treatment. Thus, gonad-related factors influence the changes in GABAA receptors and the resulting GABA responses in the cortex, but not the cerebellum, observed after chronic benzodiazepine agonist exposure in rats. These regionally specific divergent alterations in GABAergic systems may be related to the differential development of tolerance to the anticonvulsant effects of the benzodiazepines observed in these hormone groups.
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J. Pharmacol. Exp. Ther. · Aug 1993
Evidence for delta opioid receptor subtypes in rat spinal cord: studies with intrathecal naltriben, cyclic[D-Pen2, D-Pen5] enkephalin and [D-Ala2, Glu4]deltorphin.
This study characterized the antinociception produced by intrathecal (i.t.) administration of the respective delta-2 and delta-1 receptor-selective agonists, [D-Ala2, Glu4]deltorphin (DELT) and DPDPE or the mu receptor selective agonist DAMGO in the rat. It also determined whether the antinociception produced by these opioid agonists was differentially affected by i.t. coadministration of the delta-2 receptor-selective antagonist, naltriben (NTB). In the tail-flick test, the ED50 values of DELT and DPDPE were 2.7 micrograms (3.4 nmol) and 19.0 micrograms (29.4 nmol), respectively. ⋯ Although NTB did not antagonize the increase in tail-flick latency produced by 0.1 to 0.3 microgram of DAMGO, it did antagonize the increase produced by 0.03 microgram of DAMGO resulting in a steeper dose-response relationship. Unlike DPDPE or DAMGO, DELT did not increase hot-plate latency except at a dose that produced adverse motor effects. Coadministration of 3 micrograms of NTB antagonized the increase in hot-plate latency produced by DPDPE, but not DAMGO, suggesting that this delta-1 receptor-selective agonist may also have efficacy at delta-2 receptors.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
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J. Pharmacol. Exp. Ther. · Aug 1993
Imidazenil: a new partial positive allosteric modulator of gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) action at GABAA receptors.
Positive allosteric modulators of gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA)A receptors, including benzodiazepines and congeners, can be classified into three categories: 1) full allosteric modulators (i.e., triazolam and alprazolam) that act with high potency and efficacy at many GABAA receptors; 2) selective allosteric modulators (i.e., diazepam) that act with high potency and high efficacy at selected GABAA receptors; and 3) partial allosteric modulators (i.e., bretazenil) that act with high potency but low efficacy at many GABAA receptors. Imidazenil, an imidazobenzodiazepine carboxamide, has been characterized as a novel representative of the partial allosteric modulator class. When tested on a broad spectrum (native and recombinant) of GABAA receptors, imidazenil positively modulates the GABA-elicited Cl- currents with a 4- to 5-fold higher potency but an efficacy (30-50%) lower than that of diazepam, and it antagonizes the effects of the latter drug. ⋯ Unlike diazepam and alprazolam, which induce sedation and ataxia and potentiate the effects of ethanol and thiopental at doses similar to those that produce anticonflict effects and occupy 50% of brain flumazenil binding sites, imidazenil does not produce ataxia or sedation in rats nor does it potentiate the effects of ethanol or thiopental in doses 30- to 50-fold higher than those required for the anticonflict effect and for 100% occupancy of brain flumazenil binding sites. Furthermore, when administered with diazepam, imidazenil blocks in a dose-related fashion the sedative, ataxic effects of this drug and thus acts on these unwanted responses as an antagonist (i.e., like flumazenil). In all tests, imidazenil has the pharmacological profile of a partial allosteric modulator, but is more potent than bretazenil, has a longer biological half-life and, in rodents, is virtually unable to cause sedation, ataxia or to potentiate ethanol toxicity.
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The effects of opioids on testicular function were assessed in the rat through measurements of serum testosterone levels, testicular interstitial fluid (TIF) formation and TIF testosterone levels after morphine and opioid antagonist (naloxone, naltrexone) treatment. Serum and TIF levels of testosterone were significantly decreased 1 to 6 h after morphine (10 mg/kg) injection, and TIF volumes were decreased 2-3 h after injection morphine. Each of these decreases was dose-related. ⋯ Our results, therefore, indicate that morphine exerts effects on testicular function that are independent of its effects on LH. They furthermore support the hypothesis that both endogenous and exogenous opioids disrupt two major aspects of testicular function: Testosterone secretion and TIF formation. Because of the role of TIF in maintaining testicular function, our results suggest that opioid-induced changes in testosterone secretion into TIF and TIF formation may, at least in part, explain the well-established effects of opioids on reproductive endocrinology and function in the male.