title: Role of taurine as a possible transmitter in the thermoregulatory pathways of the rat.
abstract: Taurine (10 and 20 micrograms) injected unilaterally into the lateral ventricle of rats caused an increase in core temperature. Bilateral injection of taurine 2.5 and 5 micrograms into the preoptic region of the anterior hypothalamus induced a dose-related hyperthermia: higher doses (10 micrograms) caused hypothermia. Intrahypothalamically taurine-induced hyperthermia was blocked by prior injection of strychnine hydrochloride (5 and 15 micrograms); doses which alone had no effect on core temperature. Of the other inhibitory amino acids injected intrahypothalamically hypotaurine also induced a hyperthermia. GABA (10 micrograms) caused hypothermia; glycine (10 micrograms) had no effect. Potassium (50 mM) stimulated release of radioactivity from superfused slices of anterior hypothalamus prelabelled with [3H]taurine in a calcium-dependent manner. A high affinity uptake mechanism with a Km of 8.5 microM was demonstrated with [3H]taurine into slices of anterior hypothalamus. Taurine may have a neurotransmitter role in the anterior hypothalamus but whether the body temperature effects represent physiological or pharmacological events remains to be established.
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001692:Biological Transport; D001833:Body Temperature Regulation / Q000187:drug effects; D007032:Hypothalamus, Anterior / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism; D066298:In Vitro Techniques; D008297:Male; D051381:Rats; D013331:Strychnine / Q000494:pharmacology; D013654:Taurine / Q000378:metabolism / Q000494:pharmacology / Q000502:physiology*; D005680:gamma-Aminobutyric Acid / Q000494:pharmacology
chemical_list: D013654:Taurine; D005680:gamma-Aminobutyric Acid; D013331:Strychnine