Skip to main content
NCBI home page
British Journal of Pharmacology logoLink to British Journal of Pharmacology
. 1989 May;97(1):197–205. doi: 10.1111/j.1476-5381.1989.tb11942.x

Potentiation by TRH of the effect of antidepressants in the forced-swimming test, involvement of dopaminergic and opioid systems.

V Reny-Palasse 1, M Constans 1, R Rips 1
PMCID: PMC1854469  PMID: 2541855

Abstract

1. It has been shown that thyrotropin releasing hormone (TRH) can potentiate the effects of the antidepressant, imipramine, as measured by the mouse forced-swimming test. This potentiation is not associated with an increase of effective levels of noradrenaline in the synaptic clefts, but depends upon the integrity of opioid systems. The present study was designed to investigate: (a) the potentiation by TRH of the effects of other antidepressants, using the same test; (b) the possible involvement of other neuronal systems, such as the 5-hydroxytryptaminergic and dopaminergic systems; (c) the contribution of the opioid and dopaminergic systems to the potentiation of the actions of other antidepressants by TRH. 2. The effects of nortriptyline, amineptine, maprotiline, nomifensine and mianserin, but not that of clomipramine, were potentiated by TRH (2 mg kg-1, i.p.). The inhibitor of 5-hydroxytryptamine synthesis, p-chlorophenylalanine (PCPA), did not prevent the effect induced by imipramine plus TRH. Blockade of dopaminergic systems by gamma-butyrolactone (GBL) (37.5 mg kg-1, i.p.), alpha-methyl-p-tyrosine (AMPT) (125 mg kg-1, i.p.) and apomorphine (0.025 mg kg-1, i.p.) antagonized the effects induced by various antidepressants alone (at high, effective doses) or at lower ineffective doses in association with TRH. The effect induced by imipramine plus TRH was also blocked by sulpiride (16 mg kg-1, i.p.). Pretreatment with the opioid antagonist, naloxone, inhibited the effects induced by nomifensine plus TRH or mianserin plus TRH but not those induced by nortriptyline plus TRH, maprotiline plus TRH or amineptine plus TRH.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Full text

PDF
197

Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

  1. Baumann P. A., Maître L. Blockade of presynaptic alpha-receptors and of amine uptake in the rat brain by the antidepressant mianserine. Naunyn Schmiedebergs Arch Pharmacol. 1977 Oct;300(1):31–37. doi: 10.1007/BF00505077. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  2. Borsini F., Nowakowska E., Samanin R. Effect of repeated treatment with desipramine in the behavioral "despair" test in rats: antagonism by "atypical" but not "classical" neuroleptics or antiadrenergic drugs. Life Sci. 1984 Mar 19;34(12):1171–1176. doi: 10.1016/0024-3205(84)90089-4. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  3. Borsini F., Pulvirenti L., Samanin R. Evidence of dopamine involvement in the effect of repeated treatment with various antidepressants in the behavioural 'despair' test in rats. Eur J Pharmacol. 1985 Apr 2;110(2):253–256. doi: 10.1016/0014-2999(85)90219-5. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  4. Braestrup C., Scheel-Krüger J. Methylphenidate-like effects of the new antidepressant drug nomifensine (HOE 984). Eur J Pharmacol. 1976 Aug;38(2):305–312. doi: 10.1016/0014-2999(76)90333-2. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  5. Carlsson A., Corrodi H., Fuxe K., Hökfelt T. Effect of antidepressant drugs on the depletion of intraneuronal brain 5-hydroxytryptamine stores caused by 4-methyl-alpha-ethyl-meta-tyramine. Eur J Pharmacol. 1969 Mar;5(4):357–366. doi: 10.1016/0014-2999(69)90113-7. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  6. Carlsson A., Corrodi H., Fuxe K., Hökfelt T. Effects of some antidepressant drugs on the depletion of intraneuronal brain catecholamine stores caused by 4,alpha-dimethyl-meta-tyramine. Eur J Pharmacol. 1969 Mar;5(4):367–373. doi: 10.1016/0014-2999(69)90114-9. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  7. Corrodi H., Hanson L. C. Central effects of an inhibitor of tyrosine hydroxylation. Psychopharmacologia. 1966;10(2):116–125. doi: 10.1007/BF00455973. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  8. Devoize J. L., Rigal F., Eschalier A., Trolese J. F., Renoux M. Influence of naloxone on antidepressant drug effects in the forced swimming test in mice. Psychopharmacology (Berl) 1984;84(1):71–75. doi: 10.1007/BF00432028. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  9. Horita A., Carino M. A., Lai H. Pharmacology of thyrotropin-releasing hormone. Annu Rev Pharmacol Toxicol. 1986;26:311–332. doi: 10.1146/annurev.pa.26.040186.001523. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  10. Hunt P., Kannengiesser M., Raynaud J. Nomifensine: a new potent inhibitor of dopamine uptake into synaptosomes from rat brain corpus striatum. J Pharm Pharmacol. 1974 May;26(5):370–371. doi: 10.1111/j.2042-7158.1974.tb09294.x. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  11. Kafoe W. F., De Ridder J. J., Leonard B. E. The effect of a tetracyclic antidepressant compound, Org GB94, on the turnover of biogenic amines in rat brain. Biochem Pharmacol. 1976 Nov 15;25(22):2455–2460. doi: 10.1016/0006-2952(76)90447-0. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  12. Kendler K. S., Bracha H. S., Davis K. L. Dopamine autoreceptor and postsynaptic receptor blocking potency of neuroleptics. Eur J Pharmacol. 1982 Apr 23;79(3-4):217–223. doi: 10.1016/0014-2999(82)90627-6. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  13. Koe B. K., Weissman A. p-Chlorophenylalanine: a specific depletor of brain serotonin. J Pharmacol Exp Ther. 1966 Dec;154(3):499–516. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  14. Martres M. P., Costentin J., Baudry M., Marcais H., Protais P., Schwartz J. C. Long-term changes in the sensitivity of pre-and postsynaptic dopamine receptors in mouse striatum evidenced by behavioural and biochemical studies. Brain Res. 1977 Nov 11;136(2):319–337. doi: 10.1016/0006-8993(77)90806-x. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  15. Maître L., Staehelin M., Bein H. J. Blockade of noradrenaline uptake by 34276-Ba, a new antidepressant drug. Biochem Pharmacol. 1971 Sep;20(9):2169–2186. doi: 10.1016/0006-2952(71)90216-4. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  16. Peroutka S. J., Snyder S. H. [3H]Mianserin: differential labeling of serotonin and histamine receptors in rat brain. J Pharmacol Exp Ther. 1981 Jan;216(1):142–148. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  17. Plotnikoff N. P., Kastin A. J. Commentary: Neuropharmacology of hypothalamic releasing factors. Biochem Pharmacol. 1976 Feb 15;25(4):363–365. doi: 10.1016/0006-2952(76)90332-4. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  18. Porsolt R. D., Bertin A., Blavet N., Deniel M., Jalfre M. Immobility induced by forced swimming in rats: effects of agents which modify central catecholamine and serotonin activity. Eur J Pharmacol. 1979 Aug 1;57(2-3):201–210. doi: 10.1016/0014-2999(79)90366-2. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  19. Porsolt R. D., Bertin A., Jalfre M. Behavioral despair in mice: a primary screening test for antidepressants. Arch Int Pharmacodyn Ther. 1977 Oct;229(2):327–336. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  20. Porsolt R. D., Le Pichon M., Jalfre M. Depression: a new animal model sensitive to antidepressant treatments. Nature. 1977 Apr 21;266(5604):730–732. doi: 10.1038/266730a0. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  21. Reny-Palasse V., Rips R. Potentiation by TRH of the effect of imipramine on the forced-swimming test. Br J Pharmacol. 1985 Jun;85(2):463–470. doi: 10.1111/j.1476-5381.1985.tb08883.x. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  22. Samanin R., Bernasconi S., Garattini S. The effect of nomifensine on the depletion of brain serotonin and catecholamines induced respectively by fenfluramine and 6-hydroxydopamine in rats. Eur J Pharmacol. 1975 Dec;34(2):377–380. doi: 10.1016/0014-2999(75)90266-6. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  23. Samanin R., Jori A., Bernasconi S., Morpugo E., Garattini S. Biochemical and pharmacological studies on amineptine (S 1694) and (+)-amphetamine in the rat. J Pharm Pharmacol. 1977 Sep;29(9):555–558. doi: 10.1111/j.2042-7158.1977.tb11395.x. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  24. Walters J. R., Roth R. H. Dopaminergic neurons: an in vivo system for measuring drug interactions with presynaptic receptors. Naunyn Schmiedebergs Arch Pharmacol. 1976 Dec;296(1):5–14. doi: 10.1007/BF00498834. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Articles from British Journal of Pharmacology are provided here courtesy of The British Pharmacological Society

RESOURCES