[The doping rules--a set of rules in good olympic spirit?]. / Dopingregelverket--et regelverk i god olympisk ånd?

Drug control has become a part of the everyday life of persons engaged in serious sport. The drug rules have also become all embrasive. A critical review emphasizes that both the rules and their application can threaten the legal rights of sportsmen, and violate ethical norms in our society. Although, the rules are part of the regulations of a private organization, the application of the rules may have social consequences reaching far beyond the responsibilities of the governing sports authorities. Because of the rules, many sportsmen are denied optimal treatment for disease and injury. For most of the drugs on the list of banned drugs the documentation that they enhance performance is insufficient or completely lacking. The information is heavily biased, and violates well established medical and ethical requirements. The testing, analysis and interpretation are all encumbered with uncertainty, which may lead to conviction of innocent persons. According to the opinion of the authors, there are substantial reasons for requiring changes in the rules in a way that takes care of basic principles and rights. This can only be fulfilled after an open and independent debate in which all involved groups--sportsmen, officials, politicians, and experts participate.

Activity, avoidance learning and regional 5-hydroxytryptamine following intra-brain stem 5,7-dihydroxytryptamine and electrolytic midbrain raphe lesions in the rat.

Rats underwent one of the following treatments: (1) electrocoagulation of both the dorsal and median midbrain raphe nuclei; (2) 5,7-dihydroxytryptamine creatinine sulfate (5,7-DHT) injection (10 mug, as the salt, in 5 mul vehicle) into the vicinity of each midbrain raphe nucleus; (3) intra-brain stem vehicle (5 mul of 0.2% ascorbic acid in isotonic saline) injections; or, (4) a control operation. Open field activity and one-way avoidance conditioning were examined on postoperative days 16-23. Regional central 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT) and catecholamine (CA) concentrations were determined 25-27 days postoperatively. Regional 5-HT levels were greatly reduced following 5,7-DHT administration and electrolytic raphe lesions. The 5,7-DHT rats also showed a reduction in spinal 5-HT content. Central CA concentrations were not affected. Variation in the pattern of regional 5-HT changes after 5,7-DHT treatment was observed but appeared to be related to the adequacy of the dorsal raphe (B7) injection. Only the electrolytic raphe lesion animals, however, showed increased locomotor activity and retarded acquisition and forced-extinction of the one-way avoidance response. In contrast, no significant differences were observed in the open field and avoidance behavior of the 5,7-DHT, vehicle, and control groups. The hyperactivity and impaired one-way avoidance performance observed after electrolytic midbrain raphe lesions are not related simply to reductions in regional forebrain 5-HT and may well be due to damage of non-serotonergic neural systems. Clearly, the behavioral effects of central 5-HT depletion depend on the method employed. The role of 5-HT in regulating activity level and mediating avoidance behavior, furthermore, remains to be determined.

Lesions in Guddesn's tegmental nuclei produce behavioral and 5-HT effects similar to those after raphe lesions.

Lesions largely restricted to the dorsal and ventral tegmental nuclei of Gudden (GTN) produced several effects similar to those seen after midbrain raphe lesions. GTN lesions significantly reduced the 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT) concentration of the diencephalon (31 percent), hippocampus (59 percent), and remaining portion of the telencephalon (29 percent). Striatal 5-HT, however, was not affected. GTN lesions enhanced activity in an enclosed field and facilitated two-way avoidance acquisition. Pain sensitivity as measured by the flinch-jump method was not affected. These results suggest that the GTN may be the origin of ascending 5-HT fides and may be involved in the regulation of activity level and the adaptation of an animal to aversive situations. Thus, some of the behavioral and 5-HT effects of lesions in the midbrain raphe nuclei may be due to their involvement of the GTN and associated pathways.

Some observations on the estimation of 3-methoxytyramine in brain tissue.

1. A new method for the estimation of 4-hydroxy-3-methoxyphenylethylamine (3-methoxytyramine) in brain tissue is described. This is based on the formation of a fluorescent derivative by oxidation with potassium ferricyanide in ammonium hydroxide solution.2. The effects of some drugs on the concentration of 3-methoxytyramine in the brain are reported.3. The significance of changes in the striatal concentration of 3-methoxytyramine is discussed.