EAA receptors in the dorsomedial hypothalamic area mediate the cardiovascular response to activation of the amygdala.

The role of excitatory amino acid (EAA) receptors in the dorsomedial hypothalamus (DMH) in mediating the cardiovascular response to activation of the basolateral amygdala (BLA) was examined using conscious rats. Microinjection of the nonselective EAA receptor antagonist kynurenic acid (0.1-10 nmol) into the DMH blocked or reversed the increases in heart rate and arterial pressure resulting from injection of the GABAA receptor antagonists bicuculline methiodide (BMI; 100 pmol) and picrotoxin (100 pmol) into the BLA. Similar injections of kynurenic acid at sites lateral or dorsal to the DMH or injection of the inactive analog xanthurenic acid into the DMH were less effective in blocking the cardiovascular changes resulting from intra-amygdalar injection of BMI. Hypothalamic injection of the NMDA receptor antagonist 3-(2-carboxypiperazin-4-yl)-propyl-1-phosphonic acid (10 pmol) or the DL-alpha-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methylisoxazole-propionic acid receptor antagonist 1,2,3,4-tetrahydro-6-nitro-2, 3-dioxo-benzo[f]quinoxaline-7-sulfonamide (50 pmol) at doses shown to be selective for their respective EAA receptor subtypes attenuated the cardiovascular changes associated with intra-amygdalar injection of BMI. Therefore, EAA receptors in the area of the DMH appear to be involved in mediating the cardiovascular changes resulting from activation of the amygdala.

Cardiovascular effects of the beta-carboline FG 7142 in borderline hypertensive rats.

The hypothesis that acute and chronic administration of the benzodiazepine inverse agonist FG 7142 (N-methyl-beta-carboline-3-carboxamide) produces cardiovascular changes similar to those seen during acute and chronic episodes of stress was studied using conscious, unrestrained borderline hypertensive rats (BHR). Chronic intraperitoneal administration of FG 7142 (10 mg/kg; 5 days/week for 8 weeks) failed to alter resting mean arterial pressure or heart rate compared to maturation and vehicle controls. However, chronic administration of FG 7142 prevented the hypertension associated with a high salt diet. Similarly, acute intravenous (i.v.) administration of FG 7142 (10 mg/kg) in BHR rendered hypertensive with a high-salt diet produced a significant reduction in resting mean arterial pressure as well as marked increases in heart rate. Pretreatment with the benzodiazepine receptor antagonist flumazenil (RO 15-1788, 10 mg/kg, i.v.) blocked the tachycardic response but had no effect on the hypotensive effect of FG 7142 administered i.v. in BHR with salt-induced hypertension. Acute administration of FG 7142 (0.1-10 mg/kg, i.v.) in normal BHR produced no significant changes in resting mean arterial pressure and dose-related increases in heart rate. These experiments indicate that, in conscious unrestrained BHR, FG 7142 can elicit changes in heart rate but not the changes in arterial pressure typically associated with stress or anxiety. Therefore, it appears that FG 7142 is of limited use as a pharmacological tool for investigating the cardiovascular effects of acute or chronic stress in BHR.

Interaction of GABA and excitatory amino acids in the basolateral amygdala: role in cardiovascular regulation.

Activation of the amygdala in rats produces cardiovascular changes that include increases in heart rate and arterial pressure as well as behavioral changes characteristic of emotional arousal. The objective of the present study was to examine the interaction of GABA and excitatory amino acid (EAA) receptors in the basolateral amygdala (BLA) in regulating cardiovascular function. Microinjection of the GABAA receptor antagonist bicuculline methiodide (BMI) or the E A A receptor agonists NMDA or AMPA into the same region of the BLA of conscious rats produced dose-related increases in heart rate and arterial pressure. Injection of the nonselective EAA receptor antagonist kynurenic acid into the BLA prevented or reversed the cardiovascular changes caused by local injection of BMI or the noncompetitive GABA antagonist picrotoxin. Conversely, local pretreatment with the glutamate reuptake inhibitor L-trans-pyrrolidine-2,4-dicarboxylic acid enhanced the effects of intra-amygdalar injection of BMI. The cardiovascular effects of BMI were also attenuated by injection of either the NMDA antagonist 3-(2-carboxypiperazin-4-yl)-propyl-1-phosphonic acid (CPP) or the AMPA receptor antagonist 1,2,3,4-tetrahydro-6-nitro-2, 3-dioxo-benzo[f]quinoxaline-7-sulfonamide (NBQX). When these two EAA receptor antagonists were combined, their ability to suppress BMI-induced tachycardic and pressor responses was additive. These findings indicate that the cardiovascular effects caused by blockade of GABAergic inhibition in the BLA of the rat are dependent on activation of local NMDA and AMPA receptors.

In vivo characterization of two cell types in the rat globus pallidus which have opposite responses to dopamine receptor stimulation: comparison of electrophysiological properties and responses to apomorphine, dizocilpine, and ketamine anesthesia.

Extracellular single-unit recording techniques were used to examine the rat globus pallidus (GP). In both locally anesthetized, paralyzed rats and ketamine-anesthetized rats, we observed two distinct biphasic extracellular waveforms, which we have labeled Type I (negative/positive waveform) and Type II (positive/negative waveform). No significant differences were observed in the firing pattern or number of cells per track between these cell types, although the Type II neurons had a faster mean firing rate in the locally anesthetized animals. A portion of both cell types could be antidromically activated from the subthalamic nucleus, although Type II neurons had significantly slower conduction velocities. The most striking pharmacological difference between the two cell types was that Type I GP neurons were inhibited by systemic administration of the dopamine agonist apomorphine; previous studies have repeatedly shown that Type II GP cells are excited by this treatment. Pretreatment with a subthreshold dose of apomorphine reduced the responsiveness of Type I cells to a subsequent high dose of apomorphine, as has been shown for Type II cells. However, pretreatment with the NMDA antagonist dizocilpine (MK801) produced a significant change in the pattern of response to apomorphine for Type II GP neurons only. Relative to observations in locally anesthetized, paralyzed rats, ketamine anesthesia reduced the firing rate of both cell types, but did not significantly alter their direction of response to apomorphine. Thus, this study has confirmed the existence of two GP cell types with distinct extracellular waveforms and different responses to dopamine receptor stimulation. These data may necessitate a reevaluation of general theoretical models of basal ganglia function in order to account for these opposite effects of dopamine receptor stimulation on pallidal output.

A role for non-NMDA excitatory amino acid receptors in regulating the basal activity of rat globus pallidus neurons and their activation by the subthalamic nucleus.

We have investigated the hypothesis that excitatory amino acid (EAA) receptors in the globus pallidus (GP) play a significant role in maintaining the firing rates of GP neurons under basal conditions and following activation of the subthalamic nucleus (STN). Drugs were infused directly into the GP and/or STN while the extracellular single unit activity of Type II GP neurons was recorded in ketamine-anesthetized rats. Local infusions of the EAA agonists NMDA (30-300 pmol/200 nl) or AMPA (0.1-1 pmol/200 nl) elicited increases in the firing rate of GP neurons in a dose-dependent fashion. Infusion of the GABAA receptor antagonist bicuculline methiodide (1-10 pmol/100 nl) into the STN also elicited dose-related increases in the firing rate of GP neurons. Intrapallidal infusion of the non-NMDA (AMPA/kainate) receptor antagonist NBQX (0.1-1.0 nmol) reduced the basal firing rate of GP neurons by 40%. In contrast, the NMDA antagonist MK-801 (0.01-0.1 nmol) produced no significant effect on basal firing rate. Intrapallidal infusion of the non-selective EAA receptor antagonist kynurenic acid or NBQX reversed or blocked the increase in firing rate of GP neurons following bicuculline-induced activation of the STN. Similar treatment with MK-801, however, had no significant effect on this response. These results indicate that tonic stimulation of non-NMDA receptors plays an important role in maintaining the basal activity of GP neurons and in mediating the effects of increased excitatory input from subthalamic afferent neurons.

Behavioral and electrophysiological comparison of ketamine with dizocilpine in the rat.

We have compared the effects of MK 801 and ketamine on a measure of anesthesia (loss of righting reflex) and two measures of basal ganglia dopamine (DA) function: apomorphine (APO)-induced stereotypy and APO-induced excitation of type II globus pallidus (GP) neurons. As expected, ketamine induced anesthesia. High-dose MK 801 administered IP induced ataxia, but not anesthesia. When administered i.v., high-dose MK 801 induced anesthesia in only three of five rats. Using a modified stereotypy scale, it was found that pretreatment with MK 801 blocked APO-induced stereotypic sniffing. Intravenous ketamine also blocked APO-induced stereotypy, but IP ketamine did not. Similar results were observed in neurophysiological studies; MK 801 altered the excitation of type II GP neurons by APO. Intravenous ketamine (5 mg/kg) also altered the responsiveness of these cells to APO, but ketamine anesthesia (150 mg/kg, IP) had no effect. These findings suggest that MK 801 is not an effective anesthetic in rats, and the method of administration of ketamine plays a role in its ability to exert NMDA receptor blockade.

Hypothalamic excitatory amino acid receptors mediate stress-induced tachycardia in rats.

The role of hypothalamic excitatory amino acid (EAA) receptors in mediating the cardiovascular response to stress was examined using conscious chronically instrumented rats. Microinjection of the EAA agonists N-methyl-D-aspartic acid (NMDA; 1-10 pmol), alpha-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methyl-4-isooxazolepropionic acid (AMPA; 0.3-3.0 pmol), or kainic acid (0.1-1.0 pmol) into the dorsomedial hypothalamus (DMH) elicited dose-related increases in heart rate and modest elevations in arterial pressure. Local microinjection of the NMDA antagonist 2-amino-5-phosphonopentanoic acid (AP5; 100 pmol) selectively blocked NMDA-induced cardiovascular changes, whereas the non-NMDA EAA antagonist 6-cyano-7-nitroquinoxaline-2,3-dione (CNQX; 50 pmol) selectively blocked the responses to AMPA and kainic acid. In the stress trials, microinjection of the nonselective EAA antagonist kynurenic acid (1-10 nmol) into the DMH blocked air stress-induced tachycardia in a dose-related manner. Similar injection of kynurenic acid at sites lateral or posterior to the DMH or injection of xanthurenic acid (a structural analogue of kynurenic acid with no antagonistic properties at EAA receptors) into the DMH failed to influence air stress-induced cardiovascular changes. Injection of either AP5 or CNQX into the DMH at doses shown to be selective for their respective EAA receptor subtypes also attenuated air stress-induced tachycardia. Thus activity at EAA receptors in the DMH appears to be necessary for the generation of stress-induced changes in heart rate.

Interaction of hypothalamic GABAA and excitatory amino acid receptors controlling heart rate in rats.

We have previously shown that microinjection of drugs that impair gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA)-mediated synaptic inhibition into the dorsomedial hypothalamus (DMH) of rats generates cardiovascular and behavioral changes that mimic the response to stress. The purpose of this study was to examine the role of excitatory amino acid (EAA) receptors in the DMH in generating the cardiovascular changes caused by withdrawal of local GABAergic inhibition in urethan-anesthetized rats. Local treatment of the DMH with the nonselective EAA antagonist kynurenic acid blocked or reversed the increases in heart rate and blood pressure caused by microinjection of the GABAA antagonists bicuculline methiodide (BMI) or picrotoxin into the same region. Conversely, similar injection of xanthurenic acid, a structural analogue of kynurenic acid without significant effects on EAA receptors, did not significantly alter the cardiovascular changes produced by either GABAA antagonist. The tachycardic effects of BMI were also attenuated by injection of either the N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor antagonist 2-amino-5-phosphonopentanoic acid or the non-NMDA EAA receptor antagonist 6-cyano-7-nitroquinoxaline-2,3-dione. When the two EAA receptor antagonists were combined, their effects to suppress the BMI-induced tachycardia were additive. These findings suggest that the cardiovascular effects caused by blockade of GABAergic inhibition in the DMH of the rat are dependent on activation of local NMDA and non-NMDA EAA receptors.

GABAA and excitatory amino acid receptors in dorsomedial hypothalamus and heart rate in rats.

We have previously shown that microinjection of drugs that interfere with the function of the inhibitory neurotransmitter gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) into the hypothalamus produces cardiorespiratory and behavioral changes resembling those seen in emotional stress. The purpose of this study was to determine whether excitatory amino acids (EAAs) can produce a cardiovascular response similar to that caused by the GABAA receptor antagonist bicuculline methiodide (BMI) when microinjected at the same hypothalamic site in urethan-anesthetized rats and to clarify the precise locus of action of these agents. N-methyl-D-aspartic acid (NMDA, 0.68-6.8 pmol/50 nl) and kainic acid (KA, 0.47-4.7 pmol/50 nl) produced dose-related increases in heart rate and blood pressure when injected at sites in the dorsomedial hypothalamus reactive to BMI (20 pmol/50 nl). Higher doses of NMDA (68 pmol), however, failed to elicit consistent increases in heart rate and blood pressure when injected at these same sites. The effects of NMDA were selectively blocked by the NMDA receptor antagonist 2-amino-5-phosphonopentanoic acid, whereas the effects of KA were selectively blocked by the non-NMDA EAA receptor antagonist 6-cyano-7-nitroquinoxaline-2,3-dione. These results demonstrate that 1) blockade of inhibitory amino acid receptors or stimulation of EAA receptors in the dorsomedial nucleus of the hypothalamus produces tachycardic and pressor responses in urethan-anesthetized rats and 2) use of high doses of EAAs may be an unreliable method of evoking local neuronal excitation in certain regions of the central nervous system.