title: Interactions of fluoxetine with metabolism of dopamine and serotonin in rat brain regions.
abstract: Given evidence of inhibitory effects of serotonin on dopaminergic neurotransmission, a series of experiments sought neurochemical evidence of interactions between the selective serotonin transport inhibitor fluoxetine and the metabolism of dopamine (DA) or serotonin (5-HT) in regions of rat brain that might account for extrapyramidal side-effects associated with clinical use of fluoxetine. There were significant inhibitory effects of acute or repeated fluoxetine treatment on the turnover of 5-HT (accumulation of 5-hydroxytryptophan, or ratio of [5-hydroxyindoleacetic acid]/[5-HT]) in striatum, nucleus accumbens and frontal cerebral cortex, but only minor effects on metabolism of DA (accumulation of dihydroxyphenylalanine, or [homovanillic acid]/[DA] ratio), even at high doses or with repeated treatment, and no significant inhibition of the DA metabolism-increasing actions of haloperidol.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, McLean Division of Massachusetts General Hospital, Belmont 02178.
authors.forename: R J
authors.initials: RJ
authors.lastname: Baldessarini
authors.forename: E R
authors.initials: ER
authors.lastname: Marsh
authors.forename: N S
authors.initials: NS
authors.lastname: Kula
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001923:Brain Chemistry / Q000187:drug effects*; D002851:Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid; D004295:Dihydroxyphenylalanine / Q000378:metabolism; D004298:Dopamine / Q000378:metabolism*; D005473:Fluoxetine / Q000494:pharmacology*; D006220:Haloperidol / Q000494:pharmacology; D008297:Male; D051381:Rats; D011919:Rats, Inbred Strains; D012701:Serotonin / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D005473:Fluoxetine; D012701:Serotonin; D004295:Dihydroxyphenylalanine; D006220:Haloperidol; D004298:Dopamine