title: Intracerebral substance P in mice: behavioral effects and narcotic agents.
abstract: Acute intracerebral injection of the undecapeptide, substance P, in mice induced a unique reciprocal hindlimb scratching response whose intensity was dose-related. Similar intracerebral dose-response curves were obtained by the structurally related undecapeptides, physalaemin and eledoisin, but not by several unrelated peptides (TRH, neurotensin, bradykinin, somatostatin), prostaglandins E2 and F2a, dibutyryl cyclic AMP or dibutyrylcyclic GMP. Analgesic narcotic agents with predominant agonist activity administered i.p. prevented the reciprocal hindlimb scratching response induced by intracerebral substance P (0.625 microgram/mouse = ED 95). In this in vivo assay their action was stereospecific and exhibited a rank order of potency similar to that reported for analgesic activity and binding to opiate receptors in vitro. Narcotic agents with mixed agonist-antagonist activity were inactive while the narcotic antagonist, naloxone, completely reversed the action of morphine. Higher doses of naloxone alone potentiated substance P-induced reciprocal hindlimb scratching which may explain why partial narcotic agonists failed to abolish the response. There is now considerable evidence in support of a sensory neurotransmitter/modulator role for substance P within the central nervous system, and one of its actions may be associated with nociception. This concept is supported by observations in the present study which indicate that the substance P-induced reciprocal hindlimb scratching response involves nociceptive pathways within the central nervous system.
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001522:Behavior, Animal / Q000187:drug effects*; D006614:Hindlimb / Q000187:drug effects; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D009068:Movement / Q000187:drug effects; D009270:Naloxone / Q000494:pharmacology; D009294:Narcotics / Q000494:pharmacology*; D010455:Peptides / Q000494:pharmacology*; D013373:Substance P / Q000494:pharmacology*
chemical_list: D009294:Narcotics; D010455:Peptides; D013373:Substance P; D009270:Naloxone