Table 4. The effects of exposure to chronic, unpredictable stress (CUS) and/or concurrent treatment with the antidepressant imipramine (IMI; 10 mg/kg) on the binding affinity (Km) of fatty acid amide hydrolase for anandamide.
Exposure of male rats to 21 days of CUS did not modify the binding affinity of fatty acid amide hydrolase (FAAH) for anandamide. Administration of IMI alone increased the Km of FAAH, exclusively in the midbrain. However, the joint administration of CUS and IMI resulted in an increase in the Km of FAAH in the ventral striatum and the midbrain. Significant differences from non-stressed (CON), vehicle (VEH) treated animals (p < 0.05) denoted by *. For all treatment conditions, n = 4–5. Data are presented as mean nM of 3H-arachidonoylethanolamide +/− SEM.
| CON/VEH | CUS/VEH | CON/IMI | CUS/IMI | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Prefrontal Cortex | 0.61 +/− 0.08 | 0.65 +/− 0.09 | 0.65 +/− 0.10 | 0.46 +/− 0.05 |
| CUS × IMI: F (1, 15) = 1.92, p > 0.05; CUS F (1, 15) = 0.68, p > 0.05; IMI F (1, 15) = 0.80, p > 0.05 | ||||
| Hippocampus | 0.64 +/− 0.12 | 0.69 +/− 0.08 | 0.80 +/− 0.28 | 0.71 +/− 0.10 |
| CUS × IMI F (1, 16) = 0.17, p > 0.05; CUS F (1, 16) = 0.02, p > 0.05; IMI F (1, 16) = 0.28, p > 0.05 | ||||
| Hypothalamus | 0.62 +/− 0.10 | 0.42 +/− 0.05 | 0.44 +/− 0.03 | 0.55 +/− 0.12 |
| CUS × IMI F (1, 14) = 2.81, p > 0.05; CUS F (1, 14) = 0.20, p > 0.05; IMI F (1, 14) = 0.07, p > 0.05 | ||||
| Ventral Striatum | 0.37 +/− 0.05 | 0.37 +/− 0.06 | 0.37 +/− 0.04 | 0.69 +/− 0.08* |
| CUS × IMI F (1, 14) = 7.32, p < 0.02; CUS F (1, 14) = 2.11, p > 0.05; IMI F (1, 14) = 1.90 | ||||
| Amygdala | 0.81 +/− 0.14 | 0.83 +/− 0.17 | 0.95 +/− 0.14 | 0.53 +/− 0.10 |
| CUS × IMI F (1, 12) = 2.42, p > 0.05; CUS F (1, 12) = 2.11, p > 0.05; IMI F (1, 12) = 0.24, p > 0.05 | ||||
| Midbrain | 0.30 +/− 0.03 | 0.45 +/− 0.05 | 0.60 +/− 0.07* | 0.61 +/− 0.11* |
| CUS × IMI F (1, 16) = 1.11, p > 0.05; CUS F (1, 16) = 1.36, p > 0.05; IMI F (1, 16) = 10.35, p < 0.01 | ||||