Abstract
1 Ephedrine (3.1-50 mg/kg) was given intraperitoneally to rats and was found to cause a marked increase in spontaneous locomotor activity. 2 In rats with a unilateral lesion in the substantia nigra made by stereotaxic injections of 6-hydroxydopamine, ephedrine (12.5-150 mg/kg i.p.) caused a dose-dependent turning towards the lesioned side. 3 Turning behaviour and increase in locomotion produced by ephedrine were antagonized by pretreatment of the animals with pimozide, amino-oxyacetic acid or reserpine plus alpha-methyl-p-tyrosine, but not by pretreatment with phenoxybenzamine, propranolol or methergoline. 4 In in vitro studies with synaptosomes prepared from rat brain, ephedrine blocked the uptake and caused the release of [3H]-dopamine. 5 Similar results with regard to locomotion and turning behaviour were obtained with (+)-amphetamine. 6 It is concluded that the increase in locomotion and turning behaviour produced by ephedrine is mediated through an indirect dopaminergic mechanism.
Full text
PDF
Selected References
These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.
- Andén N. E. Inhibition of the turnover of the brain dopamine after treatment with the gammaaminobutyrate: 2-oxyglutarate transaminase inhibitor aminooxyacetic acid. Naunyn Schmiedebergs Arch Pharmacol. 1974;283(4):419–424. doi: 10.1007/BF00501114. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Angrist B., Rotrosen J., Kleinberg D., Merriam V., Gershon S. Dopaminergic agonist properties of ephedrine--theoretical implications. Psychopharmacology (Berl) 1977 Dec 19;55(2):115–120. doi: 10.1007/BF01457845. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Fuxe K., Hökfelt T., Ljungdahl A., Agnati L., Johansson O., Perez de la Mora M. Evidence for an inhibitory gabergic control of the meso-limbic dopamine neurons: possibility of improving treatment of schizophrenia by combined treatment with neuroleptics and gabergic drugs. Med Biol. 1975 Jun;53(3):177–183. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Herridge C. F., a'Brook M. F. Ephedrine psychosis. Br Med J. 1968 Apr 20;2(5598):160–160. doi: 10.1136/bmj.2.5598.160. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Kane F. J., Jr, Florenzano R. Psychosis accompanying use of bronchodilator compound. JAMA. 1971 Mar 29;215(13):2116–2116. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Kruk Z. L., Zarrindast M. R. Mazindol anorexia is mediated by activation of dopaminergic mechanisms. Br J Pharmacol. 1976 Nov;58(3):367–372. [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Roth R. H., Suhr Y. Mechanism of the gamma-hydroxybutyrate-induced increase in brain dopamine and its relationship to "sleep". Biochem Pharmacol. 1970 Dec;19(12):3001–3012. doi: 10.1016/0006-2952(70)90086-9. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Snyder S. H., Banerjee S. P., Yamamura H. I., Greenberg D. Drugs, neurotransmitters, and schizophrenia. Science. 1974 Jun 21;184(4143):1243–1253. doi: 10.1126/science.184.4143.1243. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Stevens J., Wilson K., Foote W. GABA blockade, dopamine and schizophrenia: experimental studies in the cat. Psychopharmacologia. 1974;39(2):105–119. doi: 10.1007/BF00440842. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Ungerstedt U. Postsynaptic supersensitivity after 6-hydroxy-dopamine induced degeneration of the nigro-striatal dopamine system. Acta Physiol Scand Suppl. 1971;367:69–93. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-201x.1971.tb11000.x. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- WALLACH D. P. Studies on the GABA pathway. I. The inhibition of gamma-aminobutyric acid-alpha-ketoglutaric acid transaminase in vitro and in vivo by U-7524 (amino-oxyacetic acid). Biochem Pharmacol. 1961 Feb;5:323–331. doi: 10.1016/0006-2952(61)90023-5. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Weissman A., Koe B. K., Tenen S. S. Antiamphetamine effects following inhibition of tyrosine hydroxylase. J Pharmacol Exp Ther. 1966 Mar;151(3):339–352. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]