title: Effects of substance P and neurokinin A (substance K) on motor behavior: unique effect of substance P attributable to its amino-terminal sequence.
abstract: The effects of intraventricular injections of the neuropeptides substance P (SP) and neurokinin A (NK-A; also called substance K) on spontaneous motor behavior were examined in mice. SP and NK-A were essentially equipotent at enhancing grooming and scratching behavior, and at reducing sniffing behavior. However, SP significantly enhanced hindlimb rearing behavior, while NK-A reduced this behavior. The effects of 3 other tachykinins, physalaemin, eledoisin and kassinin, were comparable to those of NK-A, including the reduction in rearing. Thus, SP is unique among tachykinins in its potentiation of rearing behavior. It was further demonstrated that carboxy-terminal SP fragments with tachykinin activity on smooth muscle resemble NK-A, and not SP, in their effects on motor behavior. In contrast, amino-terminal SP fragments, devoid of tachykinin-like activity, reproduced the one motor effect unique to SP, enhanced rearing, while lacking those actions common to all tachykinins. The structural requirements for enhanced rearing behavior by amino-terminal fragments were quite specific, in terms of chain length and sensitivity to D-amino acid substitutions, with the natural amino-terminal hexa- and heptapeptides being most active. The implications of these findings are discussed in light of recent observations that these same amino-terminal SP fragments are produced in vivo as metabolites of SP.
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001522:Behavior, Animal / Q000187:drug effects*; D001921:Brain / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology*; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D007276:Injections, Intraventricular; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D008968:Molecular Conformation; D008970:Molecular Weight; D015288:Neurokinin A; D009479:Neuropeptides / Q000494:pharmacology*; D010446:Peptide Fragments / Q000494:pharmacology*; D013373:Substance P / Q000031:analogs & derivatives / Q000378:metabolism / Q000494:pharmacology*; D015320:Tachykinins
chemical_list: D009479:Neuropeptides; D010446:Peptide Fragments; D015320:Tachykinins; D013373:Substance P; D015288:Neurokinin A