title: Effects of anticholinergic treatment on transient behavioral suppression and physiological responses following concussive brain injury to the rat.
abstract: Increasing doses (0.1, 1.0, 10.0 mg/kg) of scopolamine were systemically (i.p.) administered to rats subjected to moderate fluid percussion brain injury. Scopolamine treatment (1.0 mg/kg, i.p.) 15 min prior to trauma significantly reduced mortality and the duration of transient behavioral suppression assessed by a variety of measures. No differences were observed between saline- and scopolamine-treated animals in either the incidence or duration of transient apnea associated with injury. Preinjury treatment with methylscopolamine (1.04 mg/kg) or mecamylamine (1.0 mg/kg) had no effect on transient behavioral suppression. Except for increased heart rate, preinjury treatment with scopolamine (1.0 mg/kg) did not significantly alter systemic physiological responses to injury. Rats treated with scopolamine (1.0 mg/kg, i.p.) 30 s after injury tended to have shorter durations of reflex and response suppression. These experiments suggest that antimuscarinics can attenuate components of transient behavioral suppression associated with concussive brain injury. These findings are consistent with previous experimental and clinical observations and lend further support to the hypothesis that activation of a muscarinic system within the CNS mediates components of reversible traumatic unconsciousness following cerebral concussion.
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgery, Richard Roland Reynolds Neurosurgical Research Laboratories, Medical College of Virginia, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond 23298.
authors.forename: B G
authors.initials: BG
authors.lastname: Lyeth
authors.forename: C E
authors.initials: CE
authors.lastname: Dixon
authors.forename: R J
authors.initials: RJ
authors.lastname: Hamm
authors.forename: L W
authors.initials: LW
authors.lastname: Jenkins
authors.forename: H F
authors.initials: HF
authors.lastname: Young
authors.forename: H H
authors.initials: HH
authors.lastname: Stonnington
authors.forename: R L
authors.initials: RL
authors.lastname: Hayes
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001794:Blood Pressure / Q000187:drug effects; D001921:Brain / Q000187:drug effects / Q000503:physiopathology*; D001924:Brain Concussion / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000517:prevention & control; D006339:Heart Rate / Q000187:drug effects; D008297:Male; D008464:Mecamylamine / Q000494:pharmacology; D019832:N-Methylscopolamine; D010276:Parasympatholytics / Q000494:pharmacology; D051381:Rats; D011919:Rats, Inbred Strains; D012018:Reflex / Q000187:drug effects; D012601:Scopolamine / Q000494:pharmacology*; D012602:Scopolamine Derivatives / Q000494:pharmacology
chemical_list: D010276:Parasympatholytics; D012602:Scopolamine Derivatives; D008464:Mecamylamine; D012601:Scopolamine; D019832:N-Methylscopolamine