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Kappa opioid agonists produce anxiolytic-like behavior on the elevated plus-maze

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Abstract

The selectivek agonist U-50,488H was evaluated on the elevated plus-maze test of anxiety. U-50,488H was administered intraperitoneally to male Sprague-Dawley rats 20 min before testing, first in an open field apparatus, then followed immediately on the elevated plus-maze. No significant change in spontaneous locomotor activity was measured in the open field apparatus, suggesting that U-50,488H was devoid of sedative effects in the dose range tested (0.1–1000 µg/kg, IP). Doses between 10 and 1000 µg/kg produced significant increases in elevated plus-maze behavior that were consistent with anxiolytic actions for U-50,488H. These anxiolytic-like effects were antagonized by naloxone (2.0 mg/kg, IP), suggesting an opioid receptor site of action. In addition, we tested thek 1-selective U-50,488H-derivative, U-69,593 (100 µg/kg, IP), which was also shown to mimic the anxiolytic-like effects produced by U-50,488H. These results suggest that low doses of the selectivek 1 agonists U-50,488H and U-69,593 are endowed with anxiolytic properties in rodents and that thek opioid system may be involved in the behavioral response to anxiety.

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  1. Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology, East Carolina University School of Medicine, 27858-4354, Greenville, North Carolina, USA

    T. H. Privette & D. M. Terrian

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  1. T. H. Privette
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  2. D. M. Terrian
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Privette, T.H., Terrian, D.M. Kappa opioid agonists produce anxiolytic-like behavior on the elevated plus-maze. Psychopharmacology 118, 444–450 (1995). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02245945

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02245945

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