Effects of Dose, Age, Sex, Body Weight, and Smoking on Plasma Concentrations of Olanzapine and N-desmethyl Olanzapine in Inpatients With Schizophrenia.

PURPOSE: This study aimed to investigate the combined effects of dose, age, sex, body weight, and smoking on plasma concentrations of olanzapine (OLA) and N-desmethyl olanzapine (DMO) in Chinese inpatients with schizophrenia. METHODS: A retrospective study including 185 inpatients was conducted. The steady-state plasma concentrations of OLA (COLA) and DMO (CDMO) were measured using high-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry. The combined effects of dose, age, sex, body weight, and smoking on COLA and CDMO were evaluated. FINDINGS: Multiple linear regression analyses revealed that dose, age, body weight, and smoking had significant effects on COLA and CDMO in inpatients with schizophrenia treated with OLA. The dose was the most important determinant of COLA and CDMO and was positively correlated with both. Furthermore, smokers exhibited a significantly lower COLA and COLA + DMO, whereas higher body weight led to the reduction of COLA, CDMO, and COLA + DMO. Advanced age was associated with lower CDMO. IMPLICATIONS: These results suggest that dose, age, body weight, and smoking have a significant influence on the plasma concentration of OLA and its metabolite DMO. Clinicians should consider the combined effects when prescribing OLA to patients with schizophrenia.

Ion-paired pirenzepine-loaded micelles as an ophthalmic delivery system for the treatment of myopia.

Myopia is one of the most common ocular disorders for which standard treatments, such as refractive surgery, often involve invasive procedures. Pirenzepine (PRZ), a muscarinic receptor antagonist, has been recognized as a promising candidate for the treatment of myopia, but possesses poor ocular bioavailability. The overall objective of this study was to prepare PRZ-sorbic acid complexes suitable to be encapsulated into micelles with high efficiency for optimal ophthalmic delivery. The results demonstrated that sorbic acid, used as the counter ion, had the most significant effects in increasing the octanol-water distribution coefficient of PRZ as well as improving its corneal permeability in vitro among various counter ions tested. In vivo absorption results showed that a 1.5 times higher bioavailability was achieved by the addition of sorbic acid at a 1:1 ratio. Cytotoxicity studies in vitro and biocompatibility studies in vivo indicated that the micelles did not cause significant toxicities to the eyes.

Simvastatin reverses the downregulation of M1/4 receptor binding in 6-hydroxydopamine-induced parkinsonian rats: the association with improvements in long-term memory.

BACKGROUND: It is believed that muscarinic M1/4 receptors are closely correlated to the dopaminergic system and are strongly involved in the pathogenesis of Parkinson's disease (PD). In addition to regulating lipid metabolism and protection from stroke, statins have been used to regulate the declined cognition. We aimed to explore the regional changes in M1/4 receptors in the 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA)-lesioned rat brain. METHODS: PD rat model was set up by injecting 6-OHDA into the unilateral medial forebrain bundle; while simvastatin (10mg/kg/day) or saline was orally administrated for 3weeks, respectively. Long-term memory was measured using the Morris water maze. [(3)H]pirenzepine binding autoradiography was applied to investigate the alterations of M1/4 receptors in the PD rat brains. RESULTS: 6-OHDA induced long-term memory deficits along with downregulation of M1/4 receptors in the hippocampus, the medial amygdala, the posteromedial cortical and the piriform cortex; simvastatin administration significantly ameliorated the impaired memory and reversed the downregulation of M1/4 receptors in the examined brain regions. Profound positive correlations were verified between the decline in long-term memory activity and the restoration of M1/4 receptors in different brain regions after simvastatin treatment. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: Our results provide strong evidence that M1/4 receptor modulation after simvastatin administration did, at least partially, contribute to the improvement in the long-term memory in 6-OHDA-induced PD rats. These results provide a possible mechanism for simvastatin treatment in psycho-neurological diseases such as PD via M1/4 receptors.

The use of a modified [3H]4-DAMP radioligand binding assay with increased selectivity for muscarinic M3 receptor shows that cortical CHRM3 levels are not altered in mood disorders.

[(3)H]4-DAMP is a radioligand that has been used to quantify levels of the muscarinic receptor CHRM3 protein in situ. However, in addition to high affinity binding to CHRM3, [(3)H]4-DAMP binds with low affinity to CHRM1 confounding the potential to discriminate between changes in these two muscarinic receptors. We have developed a [(3)H]4-DAMP binding assay, optimised for measuring CHRM3 protein levels in the cortex, with minimal selectivity towards CHRM1. The selectivity of our assay towards CHRM3 was confirmed using recombinant receptor-expressing, cell lysate preparations. [(3)H]4-DAMP binding levels were similar between wildtype and CHRM1 knockout mice, confirming that the amount of [(3)H]4-DAMP binding to CHRM1 was negligible. We used this assay to measure CHRM3 protein levels in the frontal pole, obtained post-mortem from subjects with bipolar disorder (n = 15), major depressive disorder (n = 15) and matched controls (n = 20) and showed that [(3)H]4-DAMP binding was not altered in either bipolar disorder or major depressive disorder. Western blotting confirmed that CHRM3 protein levels were unchanged in these subjects.

Determination of olanzapine and N-desmethyl-olanzapine in plasma using a reversed-phase HPLC coupled with coulochemical detection: correlation of olanzapine or N-desmethyl-olanzapine concentration with metabolic parameters.

BACKGROUND: Olanzapine (OLZ) is one of the most prescribed atypical antipsychotic drugs but its use is associated with unfavorable metabolic abnormalities. N-desmethyl-olanzapine (DMO), one of the OLZ metabolites by CYP1A2, has been reported to have a normalizing action on metabolic abnormalities, but this remains unclear. Our aim was to explore the correlation between the concentrations of OLZ or DMO with various metabolic parameters in schizophrenic patients. METHODS: The chromatographic analysis was carried out with a solvent delivery system coupled to a Coulochem III coulometric detector to determine OLZ and DMO simultaneously in OLZ-treated patients. The correlation between the concentration of OLZ or DMO and the metabolic parameters was analyzed by the Spearman rank order correlation method (r s). PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: The established analytical method met proper standards for accuracy and reliability and the lower limitation of quantification for each injection of DMO or OLZ was 0.02 ng. The method was successfully used for the analysis of samples from nonsmoking patients (n = 48) treated with OLZ in the dosage range of 5-20 mg per day. There was no correlation between OLZ concentrations and tested metabolic parameters. DMO concentrations were negatively correlated with glucose (r s = -0.45) and DMO concentrations normalized by doses were also negatively correlated with insulin levels (r s = -0.39); however, there was a marginally positive correlation between DMO and homocysteine levels (r s = +0.38). CONCLUSIONS: The observed negative correlations between levels of DMO and glucose or insulin suggest a metabolic normalization role for DMO regardless of its positive correlation with a known cardiovascular risk factor, homocysteine. Additional studies of the mechanisms underlying DMO's metabolic effects are warranted.

Near-complete adaptation of the PRiMA knockout to the lack of central acetylcholinesterase.

Acetylcholinesterase (AChE) rapidly hydrolyzes acetylcholine. At the neuromuscular junction, AChE is mainly anchored in the extracellular matrix by the collagen Q, whereas in the brain, AChE is tethered by the proline-rich membrane anchor (PRiMA). The AChE-deficient mice, in which AChE has been deleted from all tissues, have severe handicaps. Surprisingly, PRiMA KO mice in which AChE is mostly eliminated from the brain show very few deficits. We now report that most of the changes observed in the brain of AChE-deficient mice, and in particular the high levels of ambient extracellular acetylcholine and the massive decrease of muscarinic receptors, are also observed in the brain of PRiMA KO. However, the two groups of mutants differ in their responses to AChE inhibitors. Since PRiMA-KO mice and AChE-deficient mice have similar low AChE concentrations in the brain but differ in the AChE content of the peripheral nervous system, these results suggest that peripheral nervous system AChE is a major target of AChE inhibitors, and that its absence in AChE- deficient mice is the main cause of the slow development and vulnerability of these mice. At the level of the brain, the adaptation to the absence of AChE is nearly complete.

Expanding the multipotent profile of huprine-tacrine heterodimers as disease-modifying anti-Alzheimer agents.

BACKGROUND: Multifactorial diseases such as Alzheimer's disease (AD) should be more efficiently tackled by drugs which hit multiple biological targets involved in their pathogenesis. We have recently developed a new family of huprine-tacrine heterodimers, rationally designed to hit multiple targets involved upstream and downstream in the neurotoxic cascade of AD, namely ß-amyloid aggregation and formation as well as acetylcholinesterase catalytic activity. OBJECTIVE: In this study, the aim was to expand the pharmacological profiling of huprine-tacrine heterodimers investigating their effect on muscarinic M(1) receptors as well as their neuroprotective effects against an oxidative insult. METHODS: Sprague-Dawley rat hippocampus homogenates were used to assess the specific binding of two selected compounds in competition with 1 nM [(3)H]pirenzepine (for M(1) receptors) or 0.8 nM [(3)H]quinuclidinyl benzilate (for M(2) receptors). For neuroprotection studies, SHSY5Y cell cultures were subjected to 250 µM hydrogen peroxide insult with or without preincubation with some huprine-tacrine heterodimers. RESULTS: A low nanomolar affinity and M(1)/M(2) selectivity has been found for the selected compounds. Huprine-tacrine heterodimers are not neurotoxic to SHSY5Y cells at a range of concentrations from 1 to 0.001 µM, and some of them can protect cells from the oxidative damage produced by hydrogen peroxide at concentrations as low as 0.001 µM. CONCLUSION: Even though it remains to be determined if these compounds act as agonists at M(1) receptors, as it is the case of the parent huprine Y, their low nanomolar M(1) affinity and neuroprotective effects expand their multitarget profile and increase their interest as disease-modifying anti-Alzheimer agents.

Muscarinic receptor/G-protein coupling is reduced in the dorsomedial striatum of cognitively impaired aged rats.

Behavioral flexibility, the ability to modify responses due to changing task demands, is detrimentally affected by aging with a shift towards increased cognitive rigidity. The neurobiological basis of this cognitive deficit is not clear although striatal cholinergic neurotransmission has been implicated. To investigate the possible association between striatal acetylcholine signaling with age-related changes in behavioral flexibility, young, middle-aged, and aged F344 X Brown Norway F1 rats were assessed using an attentional set-shifting task that includes two tests of behavioral flexibility: reversal learning and an extra-dimensional shift. Rats were also assessed in the Morris water maze to compare potential fronto-striatal-dependent deficits with hippocampal-dependent deficits. Behaviorally characterized rats were then assessed for acetylcholine muscarinic signaling within the striatum using oxotremorine-M-stimulated [(35)S]GTPγS binding and [(3)H]AFDX-384 receptor binding autoradiography. The results showed that by old age, cognitive deficits were pronounced across cognitive domains, suggesting deterioration of both hippocampal and fronto-striatal regions. A significant decline in oxotremorine-M-stimulated [(35)S]GTPγS binding was limited to the dorsomedial striatum of aged rats when compared to young and middle-aged rats. There was no effect of age on striatal [(3)H]AFDX-384 receptor binding. These results suggest that a decrease in M2/M4 muscarinic receptor coupling is involved in the age-associated decline in behavioral flexibility.

Effects of benzodiazepine treatment on cortical GABA(A) and muscarinic receptors: studies in schizophrenia and rats.

Changes in cortical γ-aminobutyric acid A (GABA(A)) receptors and muscarinic receptors have been reported in schizophrenia, a disorder treated with antipsychotic drugs and benzodiazepines. As there is a reported functional relationship between the GABAergic and cholinergic systems in the human central nervous system we have investigated whether there are changes in the GABA(A) and muscarinic receptors in the cortex of subjects from APD-treated subjects with schizophrenia and whether changes were different in subjects who had also received benzodiazepine treatment. We failed to show any strong correlations between changes in GABA(A) and muscarinic receptors in the CNS of subjects with schizophrenia. We showed that subjects with schizophrenia treated with benzodiazepines had lower levels of muscarinic receptors; which was not the case in rats treated with APDs, benzodiazepines or a combination of both drugs. Further, the benzodiazepine binding site, but not the muscimol binding site, was decreased in the parietal cortex of subjects with schizophrenia independent of benzodiazepine status at death. These data would therefore support our previously stated hypotheses that changes in the cortical cholinergic and GABAergic systems are involved in the pathophysiology of schizophrenia.

Decreased kainate receptors in the hippocampus of apolipoprotein D knockout mice.

Apolipoprotein D (ApoD) has many actions critical to maintaining mammalian CNS function. It is therefore significant that levels of ApoD have been shown to be altered in the CNS of subjects with schizophrenia, suggesting a role for ApoD in the pathophysiology of the disorder. There is also a large body of evidence that cortical and hippocampal glutamatergic, serotonergic and cholinergic systems are affected by the pathophysiology of schizophrenia. Thus, we decided to use in vitro radioligand binding and autoradiography to measure levels of ionotropic glutamate, some muscarinic and serotonin 2A receptors in the CNS of ApoD(-/-) and isogenic wild-type mice. These studies revealed a 20% decrease (mean+/-SEM: 104+/-10.2 vs. 130+/-10.4 fmol/mg ETE) in the density of kainate receptors in the CA 2-3 of the ApoD(-/-) mice. In addition there was a global decrease in AMPA receptors (F(1,214)=4.67, p<0.05) and a global increase in muscarinic M2/M4 receptors (F(1,208)=22.77, p<0.0001) in the ApoD(-/-) mice that did not reach significance in any single cytoarchitectural region. We conclude that glutamatergic pathways seem to be particularly affected in ApoD(-/-) mice and this may contribute to the changes in learning and memory, motor tasks and orientation-based tasks observed in these animals, all of which involve glutamatergic neurotransmission.

Ocular permeability of pirenzepine hydrochloride enhanced by methoxy poly(ethylene glycol)-poly(D, L-lactide) block copolymer.

Methoxy poly(ethylene glycol)-poly(D, L-lactide) block copolymer was tested as an ocular permeation enhancer for pirenzepine hydrochloride. The block copolymers with the methoxy poly(ethylene glycol) to poly(D, L-lactide) weight ratio of 80/20, 50/50, 40/60 were synthesized by a ring-opening polymerization procedure. In vitro transcorneal experiments demonstrated that the block copolymer 80/20 significantly enhanced the transcorneal permeation of pirenzepine at the mass ratio of 1/1.4 (pirenzepine hydrochloride/copolymer). Interaction between pirenzepine and copolymer was identified by infrared spectroscopy analysis and dialysis experiments. Ocular pharmacokinetics of pirenzepine/copolymer preparation by in vivo instillation experiments confirmed that block copolymer could enhance the ocular penetration of pirenzepine. Ocular chronic toxicity experiments of block copolymer and pirenzepine/copolymer preparation were studied on rabbits, and no significant toxicity in both groups was observed within 9 months. It could conclude that pirenzepine/copolymer preparation is effective and safe in ocular delivery of pirenzepine.

Basal ganglia cholinergic and dopaminergic function in progressive supranuclear palsy.

Progressive Supranuclear Palsy (PSP) is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder. In contrast to Parkinson's disease (PD) and dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB), replacement therapy with dopaminergic and cholinergic agents in PSP has been disappointing. The neurochemical basis for this is unclear. Our objective was to measure dopaminergic and cholinergic receptors in the basal ganglia of PSP and control brains. We measured, autoradiographically, dopaminergic (dopamine transporter, 125I PE2I and dopamine D2 receptors, 125I epidepride) and cholinergic (nicotinic alpha4beta2 receptors, 125I 5IA85380 and muscarinic M1 receptors, 3H pirenzepine) parameters in the striatum and pallidum of pathologically confirmed PSP cases (n=15) and controls (n=32). In PSP, there was a marked loss of dopamine transporter and nicotinic alpha4beta2 binding in the striatum and pallidum, consistent with loss of nigrostriatal neurones. Striatal D2 receptors were increased in the caudate and muscarinic M1 receptors were unchanged compared with controls. These results do not account for the poor response to dopaminergic and cholinergic replacement therapies in PSP, and suggest relative preservation of postsynaptic striatal projection neurones bearing D2/M1 receptors.

Opposing short- and long-term effects on muscarinic M1/4 receptor binding following chronic phencyclidine treatment.

Phencyclidine (PCP) is a noncompetitive N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor antagonist. Several studies have demonstrated that chronic NMDA receptor antagonist treatment in humans and animals can cause long-term behavioral changes that are reminiscent of negative and cognitive schizophrenia-like symptoms. The muscarinic cholinergic system, which is associated with cognitive functions, has been hypothesized to contribute to PCP's mechanism of action. No study, however, has examined the status of M1/4 receptors in the PCP model of schizophrenia. The aim of the present study was to investigate the effects of chronic (14 day) PCP treatment on mouse brain M1/4 receptors in the short term (1 hr and 24 hr) and long term (14 days) after last PCP administration. [(3)H]pirenzepine was used to target M1/4 receptors. In the short term following chronic PCP treatment, M1/4 binding was significantly increased in regions of the limbic system, caudate-putamen, cortex, and thalamus (ranging from 56% to 368%), compared with saline-treated mice. There were no differences in binding between mice treated with PCP for 14 days and sacrificed 1 hr or 24 hr after the final PCP treatment. In the long term following chronic PCP treatment, M1/4 binding was significantly decreased in all of the above-mentioned brain regions (ranging from 31% to 72%), except in the thalamus, which showed no change. These findings in the long-term group are similar to those reported in post-mortem studies of patients suffering from schizophrenia.

Olanzapine treatment decreases the density of muscarinic M2 receptors in the dorsal vagal complex of rats.

In this study, we investigated the effects of antipsychotic drugs, olanzapine and haloperidol, on the density of the muscarinic M2 receptors in the dorsal vagal complex (DVC) and hypoglossal nucleus (HN). Female Sprague Dawley rats were treated with olanzapine, haloperidol or vehicle (control) for 1 (short-term) or 12 weeks (long-term). Quantitative autoradiography was used to investigate the M2 receptor density in the DVC and HN using a muscarinic antagonist [(3)H] AF-DX384. Olanzapine, but not haloperidol, treatment induced a significant decrease in the binding density of M2 receptors in the DVC compared to control groups. Although the HN showed a higher density of [(3)H] AF-DX384 binding than the DVC, treatment with both olanzapine and haloperidol did not induce any significant changes in [(3)H] AF-DX384 binding in the HN. These results suggest that olanzapine-induced body weight gain may be associated with functional changes in the muscarinic neurotransmission in the DVC.

Altered hippocampal muscarinic M4, but not M1, receptor expression from subjects with schizophrenia.

BACKGROUND: Having shown a decrease in [3H]pirenzepine binding in the hippocampus from subjects with schizophrenia, we wished to determine whether such a change in radioligand binding was associated with changes in hippocampal mRNA for the muscarinic1 (M1) and muscarinic4 (M4) receptors in tissue from different cohorts of subjects. METHOD: The [3H]pirenzepine binding using autoradiography and in situ hybridization with oligonucleotides specific for muscarinic M1 and M4 receptors were completed using hippocampal tissue obtained postmortem from 20 control subjects and 20 subjects with schizophrenia. RESULTS: The [3H]pirenzepine binding was decreased in the dentate gyrus (p < .05), CA3 (p < .01), CA2 (p < .05), and CA1 (p < .01) regions of the hippocampus from subjects with schizophrenia. Levels of M4 mRNA varied with the diagnosis of schizophrenia (p = .01), but significant region-specific changes were not apparent. Changes in levels of mRNA for the muscarinic M1 receptor were not detected with diagnosis. CONCLUSIONS: This study suggests that decreases in hippocampal [3H]pirenzepine binding in subjects with schizophrenia are most likely associated with widespread changes in expression levels of the M4 receptor. These data further implicate the hippocampal formation in the pathology of schizophrenia.

Disrupted muscarinic M1 receptor signaling correlates with loss of protein kinase C activity and glutamatergic deficit in Alzheimer's disease.

There are few studies on the clinical and neurochemical correlates of postsynaptic cholinergic dysfunction in Alzheimer's disease (AD). We have previously found that attenuation of guanine nucleotide-binding (G-) protein coupling to muscarinic M(1) receptors in the neocortex was associated with dementia severity. The present study aims to study whether this loss of M(1)/G-protein coupling is related to alterations in signaling kinases and NMDA receptors. Postmortem frontal cortices of 22 AD subjects and 12 elderly controls were obtained to measure M(1) receptors, M(1)/G-protein coupling, NMDA receptors as well as protein kinase C (PKC) and Src kinase activities. We found that the extent of M(1)/G-protein coupling loss was correlated with reductions in PKC activity and NMDA receptor density. In contrast, Src kinase activity was neither altered nor associated with M(1)/G-protein coupling. Given the well established roles of neuronal PKC signaling and NMDA receptor function in cognitive processes, our results lend further insight into the mechanisms by which postsynaptic cholinergic dysfunction may underlie the cognitive features of AD, and suggest alternative therapeutic targets to cholinergic replacement.

[Corneal permeability of topically applied pirenzepine solution].

OBJECTIVE: To study the corneal permeability of three different pirenzepine eye-drop solutions and provide reference for further clinical use. METHODS: Sixty-three New Zealand white rabbits were divided into three groups. Each group of rabbits received 2% pirenzepine (pirenzepine group), 2% pirenzepine with 0.1% hyaluronic acid (hyaluronic acid group), or 2% pirenzepine with 0.1% azone (azone group). One drop eye-drops was applied to conjunctive sac every 5 min for six times. Aqueous samples were obtained from each group at 0.5, 1.0, 2.0, 4.0, 8.0, 12.0, 24.0 h after the last drop, respectively. Concentration of pirenzepine in these samples was determined by the HPLC (high pressure liquid chromatography). Stimulation symptom of rabbit eyes was also observed. RESULTS: The concentrations of pirenzepine in aqueous humor were (0.40 +/- 0.06) microg/ml at 0.5 h, (0.53 +/- 0.03) microg/ml at 1.0 h, (1.52 +/- 0.33) microg/ml at 2.0 h and (0.15 +/- 0.02) microg/ml at 4.0 h in pirenzepine group. Aqueous humor concentration of pirenzepine in both 2% pirenzepine with 0.1% azone and 2% pirenzepine with 0.1% hyaluronic acid were significantly higher than that of single pirenzepine application, and their bioavailability in the groups with combinations of pirenzepine with 0.1% azone or 0.1% hyaluronic acid were 23.0 times and 3.4 times higher than that of single pirenzepine usage. No obvious irritate symptom was found in rabbit of all three groups after eye-drop applying. CONCLUSIONS: The combination application of pirenzepine with azone or hyaluronic acid has higher corneal permeability compared with pirenzepine alone. This result indicates that azone and hyaluronic acid could be used in pirenzepine eye-drop solution to increase corneal permeability.

Impaired coupling of muscarinic M1 receptors to G-proteins in the neocortex is associated with severity of dementia in Alzheimer's disease.

Impaired transmission of acetylcholine-mediated signaling by postsynaptic muscarinic M1 receptors has been postulated to underlie the limited efficacy of cholinergic replacement therapies in Alzheimer's disease (AD). However, a clear relationship between the functionality of M1 receptors and dementia severity has not been demonstrated. The present study aims to measure M1 coupling to its nucleotide binding (G-) protein in the AD neocortex, and to correlate neurochemical findings with clinical features. A cohort of dementia patients was longitudinally assessed for cognitive decline, with postmortem neuropathological confirmation of AD diagnosis. Measures of M1 receptor density, M1/G-protein coupling and choline acetyltransferase (ChAT) activities were performed in the frontal and temporal cortex of 24 AD patients as well as in 12 age-matched controls. We found that M1 receptor densities were unchanged in AD, which contrasted with significantly reduced M1 coupling to G-proteins in severely demented AD patients. Loss of M1/G-protein coupling in the frontal cortex, but not the temporal cortex, also correlated with the rate of cognitive decline. Additionally, correlations between M1/G-protein coupling and ChAT activities were demonstrated in both regions. These results suggest that defective coupling of neocortical M1 receptors to G-proteins is a neurochemical substrate of cognitive decline in AD. Based on its associations with ChAT deficits and dementia severity, we propose that M1/G-protein uncoupling may have a significant role in the disease mechanism of AD and thus may be considered to be a potential therapeutic target.

Cholinergic receptor subtypes in the olfactory bulbectomy model of depression.

The connection between smoking and depression, the antidepressant actions of nicotine and the targeting of nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChRs) by monoamine re-uptake inhibitors all point to a potential role of nAChRs in the etiology and/or symptomatology of depression. In the current study, we evaluated nAChR subtypes in brain regions of rats subjected to olfactory bulbectomy (OBX), a standard animal model that recapitulates many of the behavioral and neurochemical alterations thought to underlie human depression. Comparisons were made both to sham-operated controls and unoperated animals. OBX led to upregulation of cerebrocortical alpha4beta2 nAChRs and downregulation of striatal alpha7 nAChRs as compared to either the sham-operated or unoperated groups. Striatal alpha4beta2 nAChRs were also downregulated but the sham surgery by itself produced a partial effect, masking the contribution of the OBX lesion. In agreement with earlier studies, we also found downregulation of muscarinic AChRs (both m1 and m2 subtypes) in the striatum when comparing the OBX group to sham-operated controls, but because sham surgery evoked mAChR upregulation, the effect was not apparent when the OBX animals were contrasted to the unoperated group. Accordingly, caution needs to be exercised in interpreting studies of cholinergic function in the OBX model that do not include unoperated animals as an additional comparison group. Our results reinforce a relationship between depression and nAChR expression and point to the need for parallel studies in human depression that might lead to the design of novel therapies targeting specific nAChR subtypes.

HPLC determination of pirenzepine dihydrochloride in rabbit aqueous humor.

Pirenzepine was considered as a pharmacologic agent of preventing form-deprivation myopia. To assess the ocular bioavailability of pirenzepine, a HPLC method for determination of pirenzepine in rabbit aqueous humor was developed. An HPLC system was used in the reverse phase mode for the determination of pirenzepine. A Luna RP18 5 microm 4.6 mm x 150 mm column was employed at 35 degrees C. The mobile phase was methanol/0.02 M KH2PO4/sodium 1-pentanesulfonate (350/650/1, v/v/m, pH was adjusted to 8.0 by dropping 1M NaOH). The flow rate was 1 ml/min. Pirenzepine was monitored at 280 nm. Sample treatment procedure consists of deproteinisation with methanol. Calibration curves fitted by plotting the peak area versus concentration were linear in the range 20-400 ng/ml. The limit of quantification (LOQ) of present method was 20 ng/ml. Within-day and inter-day coefficient of variation was lower than 10%. Analytical recoveries were determined as 92.4, 95.4 and 101.4% at concentrations of 40, 200 and 400 ng/ml. In conclusion, this HPLC method using a simple sample treatment procedure appears suitable for monitoring ocular concentration of pirenzepine.