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Effect of Acute and Chronic Administration of Methylphenidate on Mitochondrial Respiratory Chain in the Brain of Young Rats

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Abstract

Methylphenidate is commonly used for the treatment of attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder. There are still few works regarding the effects of methylphenidate on brain energy metabolism. Thus, in the present study we evaluated the effect of chronic administration of methylphenidate on the activities of mitochondrial respiratory chain complexes I and III in the brain of young rats. The effect of acute administration of methylphenidate on mitochondrial respiratory chain complexes I, II, III and IV in the brain of young rats was also investigated. For acute administration, a single injection of methylphenidate was given to rats on postnatal day 25. For chronic administration, methylphenidate injections were given starting at postnatal day 25 once daily for 28 days. Our results showed that complexes I and III were not affected by chronic administration of methylphenidate. Moreover, the acute administration of methylphenidate decreased complex I activity in cerebellum and prefrontal cortex, whereas complexes II, III and IV were not altered.

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Acknowledgments

This research was supported by grants from Programa de Pós-graduação em Ciências da Saúde, Universidade do Extremo Sul Catarinense (UNESC) and Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Laboratório de Fisiopatologia Experimental, Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ciências da Saúde, Unidade Acadêmica de Ciências da Saúde, Universidade do Extremo Sul Catarinense, Criciúma, SC, 88806-000, Brazil

    Ana O. Fagundes, Maira R. Aguiar, Claudia S. Aguiar, Giselli Scaini, Monique U. Sachet, Nayara M. Bernhardt, Gislaine T. Rezin & Emilio L. Streck

  2. Laboratório de Neurociências, Universidade do Extremo Sul Catarinense, Criciúma, SC, 88806-000, Brazil

    Samira S. Valvassori & João Quevedo

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  1. Ana O. Fagundes
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  2. Maira R. Aguiar
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  3. Claudia S. Aguiar
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  4. Giselli Scaini
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  5. Monique U. Sachet
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  6. Nayara M. Bernhardt
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  7. Gislaine T. Rezin
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  8. Samira S. Valvassori
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  10. Emilio L. Streck
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Correspondence to Emilio L. Streck.

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Fagundes, A.O., Aguiar, M.R., Aguiar, C.S. et al. Effect of Acute and Chronic Administration of Methylphenidate on Mitochondrial Respiratory Chain in the Brain of Young Rats. Neurochem Res 35, 1675–1680 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11064-010-0229-9

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