Repeated exposure to cocaine produces long-lasting deficits in the serotonergic stimulation of prolactin and renin, but not adrenocorticotropin secretion.

To determine whether cocaine-induced deficits in serotonergic function are long-lasting, the neuroendocrine responses to the serotonin (5-hydroxytryptamine, 5-HT) releaser, p-chloroamphetamine were evaluated 1-8 weeks subsequent to 7 days of cocaine exposure (15 mg/kg b.i.d.). In cocaine-pretreated rats, the p-chloroamphetamine-induced elevations of prolactin and renin secretion were significantly reduced for 8 and 4 weeks, respectively. In contrast, the p-chloroamphetamine-induced elevation of adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) secretion was at control values 1 week after cocaine exposure. The data suggest that some cocaine-induced deficits in serotonergic function are long-lasting.

Repeated injections of cocaine inhibit the serotonergic regulation of prolactin and renin secretion in rats.

Alterations in serotonergic function following repeated cocaine injections were examined using neuroendocrine responses to a serotonin (5-HT) releaser and 5-HT agonists. Forty-two hours following administration of cocaine (1-15 mg/kg i.p.) twice daily for 7 or 30 days, male Sprague-Dawley rats were injected with the 5-HT releaser p-chloroamphetamine (PCA; 8 mg/kg i.p.) and blood samples were collected 1 h later for radioimmunoassays of plasma prolactin, plasma renin activity (PRA) and plasma renin concentration (PRC). PCA significantly increased secretion of prolactin and renin. These responses were attenuated in rats pretreated with cocaine for 30 days. In rats receiving cocaine for 7 days, the attenuation of PCA-induced secretion of prolactin and renin was less consistently observed. To determine whether these alterations were due to pre- or postsynaptic effects, rats were injected with cocaine (15 mg/kg i.p.) twice daily for 7 days, and the neuroendocrine responses to the direct 5-HT agonists RU 24969 and m-CPP were examined, 42 h after the last cocaine injection. Pretreatment with cocaine potentiated RU 24969-induced stimulation of plasma prolactin concentration. However, cocaine did not alter the ability of m-CPP to increase plasma prolactin concentrations. The stimulation of renin secretion in response to both 5-HT agonists was not altered by cocaine pretreatment. The data suggest that repeated cocaine impairs the function of serotonergic nerve terminals that regulate these endocrine responses. Furthermore, the 5-HT receptors that mediate prolactin secretion may exhibit supersensitivity.

Prior chronic exposure to cocaine inhibits the serotonergic stimulation of ACTH and secretion of corticosterone.

The effect of long-term pretreatment with cocaine on serotonergic regulation of ACTH (adrenocorticotropic hormone; corticotropin) and secretion of corticosterone in rats was investigated. The following observations were made: (1) Pretreatment with cocaine had no significant effect on basal levels of ACTH and corticosterone in plasma. However, cocaine caused a reduction in the ability of the 5-HT (5-hydroxytryptamine, serotonin) releaser p-chloroamphetamine (PCA) to increase corticosterone in plasma, 42 hr after the last injection of cocaine. (2) Exposure to cocaine for 7 days was sufficient to produce a maximal inhibition of the PCA-induced increase in ACTH in plasma. (3) The inhibitory effect of cocaine on PCA-induced release of ACTH was more marked than on corticosterone. (4) Conversely, the dose-dependent stimulatory effect of two 5-HT1 agonists, RU 24969 (5-methoxy-3-(1,2,3,4-tetrahydro-4-pyridinyl)-1H-indole) and m-CPP (m-chlorophenylpiperazine), on ACTH and corticosterone was not reduced by 7 days of exposure to cocaine. Taken together, these findings indicate that pretreatment with cocaine reduced the function of serotonergic nerve-terminals but not postsynaptic receptors, that stimulate ACTH and secretion of corticosterone.

Acute, but not repeated, cocaine administration decreases renin secretion in the conscious male rat.

The effects of cocaine on renin secretion have been addressed and a previously unreported inhibitory effect has been identified on this neuroendocrine system in the conscious male rat. Acute intraperitoneal administration of cocaine dose-dependently (1.5, 7.5, 15, and 30 mg/kg; at 15 min) produced a significant decrease in both plasma renin activity (PRA) and plasma renin concentration (PRC). The time course of inhibition by cocaine in PRA and PRC revealed maximal effects at 15 min following a 15 mg/kg dose. In contrast, the long term administration of cocaine for 1, 7, or 30 days (15 mg/kg, twice daily, i.p.) did not produce changes in PRC.

Neuroendocrine evidence for denervation supersensitivity of serotonin receptors: effects of the 5-HT agonist RU 24969 on corticotropin, corticosterone, prolactin and renin secretion.

Serotonergic stimulation can increase the secretion of several hormones through the involvement of different serotonin (5-HT) receptor subtypes. RU 24969, a 5-HT agonist with highest affinity at 5-HT1A and 5-HT1B receptors, increased plasma renin activity (PRA) and plasma renin concentration (PRC) as well as plasma corticosterone and prolactin concentrations in a dose-dependent manner. Inasmuch as 5-HT2 receptors mediate the serotonergic stimulation of renin secretion, we examined the ability of two selective 5-HT2 antagonists, ritanserin and LY53857, to inhibit the neuroendocrine effects of RU 24969. To determine whether the 5-HT receptors which are involved in the stimulation of these hormones are pre- or postsynaptic, RU 24969 was also injected to rats whose brain serotonergic neurons were chemically destroyed by i.c.v. injection of 5,7-dihydroxytryptamine. Both ritanserin and LY53857 blocked the effect of RU 24969 on PRA and PRC, but did not inhibit the RU 24969-induced elevation in plasma corticosterone concentrations. Ritanserin did not inhibit the effect of RU 24969 on prolactin levels, but LY53857 produced a partial inhibition of the RU 24969-induced elevation of prolactin concentrations. In rats with chemical lesions of serotonergic neurons the dose-response curves of RU 24969 for PRA and PRC as well as corticotropin, corticosterone and prolactin shifted to the left, suggesting functional up-regulation of postsynaptic 5-HT receptors.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)