ABSTRACT
We studied the effects of selank on the development of symptoms of acute 48-h alcohol withdrawal in outbred rats drinking 10 % ethanol as the only source of fluid for 24 weeks. In alcohol-preferring animals (mean daily ethanol intake >5.0 g/kg) allowed free choice between 10 % ethanol and water, single intraperitoneal injection of selank in a dose of 0.3 mg/kg eliminated anxiety induced by ethanol withdrawal in tests elevated plus maze and social interaction tests and prevented the formation of mechanical allodynia without affecting ethanol consumption. The fi ndings suggest that selank is effective in eliminating of alcohol withdrawal symptoms in rats.
Subject(s)
Anti-Anxiety Agents/pharmacology , Anxiety/prevention & control , Hyperalgesia/prevention & control , Oligopeptides/pharmacology , Substance Withdrawal Syndrome/prevention & control , Alcoholism/physiopathology , Animals , Animals, Outbred Strains , Anxiety/physiopathology , Behavior, Animal/drug effects , Disease Models, Animal , Ethanol/administration & dosage , Hyperalgesia/physiopathology , Injections, Intraperitoneal , Male , Maze Learning/drug effects , Rats , Substance Withdrawal Syndrome/physiopathology , Treatment OutcomeABSTRACT
The effects of Selank, the active component of which is the heptapeptide Thr-Lys-Pro-Arg-Pro-Gly-Pro, which includes the tetrapeptide tuftsin and three natural levorotatory amino acids, on behavior and brain serotonin and noradrenaline levels were studied in adult rats subjected to antenatal hypoxia on days 14-16 of gestation. Administration of Selank (300 microg/kg, i.p.) improved sensory attention levels by factors of 2-3 (p < 0.01), facilitated the learning process by a factor of 1.5 (p < 0.01), normalized the level of investigative activity in the open field and hole board, and restored the balance of activity between the serotoninergic and noradrenergic systems of the brain. The data obtained here provide evidence that Selank can be used to compensate for the long-term negative effects of antenatal hypoxia on brain integrative activity and the activity of monoaminergic transmitter systems.
Subject(s)
Biogenic Amines/metabolism , Brain Chemistry/drug effects , Brain/physiology , Hypoxia, Brain/drug therapy , Hypoxia, Brain/psychology , Oligopeptides/therapeutic use , Prenatal Exposure Delayed Effects/drug therapy , Animals , Attention/drug effects , Attention/physiology , Behavior, Animal/physiology , Brain/drug effects , Conditioning, Operant/drug effects , Dopamine/metabolism , Exploratory Behavior/drug effects , Female , Hypoxia, Brain/metabolism , Norepinephrine/metabolism , Physical Stimulation , Pregnancy , Prenatal Exposure Delayed Effects/metabolism , Prenatal Exposure Delayed Effects/psychology , Rats , Rats, Wistar , Serotonin/metabolismABSTRACT
Effects of selank on learning, memory, and attention to sensory stimuli of different modality were studied in adult Wistar rats treated with 6-hydroxydopamine (neurotoxin selectively damaging catecholaminergic neurons and their terminals) during the first 3 days of life. Selank (300 microg/kg) restored cognitive processes disordered by chronic artificial inhibition of the cerebral catecholaminergic system.
Subject(s)
Behavior, Animal/drug effects , Catecholamines/metabolism , Neurons/drug effects , Oligopeptides/pharmacology , Animals , Animals, Newborn , Attention/drug effects , Brain/drug effects , Brain/pathology , Brain/physiopathology , Exploratory Behavior/drug effects , Hydroxydopamines/administration & dosage , Hydroxydopamines/toxicity , Injections, Intraperitoneal , Learning/drug effects , Male , Memory/drug effects , Neurons/metabolism , Neurons/pathology , Neurotoxins/administration & dosage , Neurotoxins/toxicity , Oligopeptides/administration & dosage , Rats , Rats, Wistar , Time FactorsABSTRACT
We studied the seasonal effects of peptide preparation Selank on orientation and exploratory activity in 36 arctic ground squirrels Citellus undulatus in the open-field and hole-board tests. Selank most significantly increased behavioral activity of hibernating animals in the spring and fall. The test peptide had no effect on locomotor activity of animals. The selective stimulatory effect of Selank on exploratory behavior of hibernating animals was season-dependent. The maximum effect was observed under conditions of seasonal depression-like state.
Subject(s)
Hibernation/drug effects , Oligopeptides/pharmacology , Animals , Arctic Regions , Behavior, Animal/drug effects , Female , Male , Motor Activity , Movement , Peptides/chemistry , Sciuridae , SeasonsABSTRACT
White laboratory male rats, inbred male C57BL/6 and Balb/c mice, and male Wistar rats, all previously divided on the basis of the type of emotional reactivity, were used to compare the effects of ten peptide compounds of the tuftsin family and Selank on the behavioral manifestations of emotional stress created by a conflict situation. Peptides were shown to have positive emotional effects and antistress actions. Individual physiologically significant effects were seen, due to the molecular structures of the study peptides and/or their degradation fragments. The results demonstrate the potential for the synthesis of peptide compounds with predictable directions of pharmacological actions and safe for wide use.
Subject(s)
Adaptation, Psychological/drug effects , Anti-Anxiety Agents/pharmacology , Oligopeptides/pharmacology , Stress, Psychological/physiopathology , Tuftsin/pharmacology , Animals , Conflict, Psychological , Drug Evaluation, Preclinical , Male , Mice , Mice, Inbred BALB C , Mice, Inbred C57BL , Peptide Fragments/pharmacology , Rats , Rats, Wistar , Species SpecificityABSTRACT
Experimental data are presented which were obtained during an investigation of the influence of various doses of a synthetic heptapeptide based on tafcine on the learning of a complex instrumental skill in dogs. The effectiveness of the intranasal application of the peptide in the early stages of learning was demonstrated, as was its capacity to restore the lost skill. The vegetative support of the motoric reactions during the modulation of the learning by the peptide was investigated.
