Chronic haloperidol treatment potentiates apomorphine- and ethanol-induced hypothermia in the rat.
Supersensitivity developed in the central dopaminergic system of the rat after 21 days of chronic haloperidol injection. This was indicated by a higher level of apomorphine-elicited stereotypic behavior and by higher concentrations of striatal 3H-spiroperidol binding sites in haloperidol-treated rats compared to saline-treated controls. The chronic haloperidol treatment did not affect the baseline body temperature but potentiated both apomorphine- and ethanol-induced falls in core temperature. Such potentiation may also be related to dopamine supersensitivity. However, no significant correlation was found between apomorphine- or ethanol-induced hypothermia and apomorphine-elicited stereotypic behavior or the concentration of striatal 3H-spiroperidol binding sites. Hence, the nigrostriatal dopamine system does not appear to be involved in the development of hypothermic responses to these agents.
D000818:Animals; D001058:Apomorphine / Q000494:pharmacology*; D001665:Binding Sites; D003342:Corpus Striatum / Q000378:metabolism; D004357:Drug Synergism; D000431:Ethanol / Q000494:pharmacology*; D006220:Haloperidol / Q000494:pharmacology*; D006801:Humans; D007035:Hypothermia / Q000139:chemically induced; D007700:Kinetics; D008297:Male; D051381:Rats; D011919:Rats, Inbred Strains; D013134:Spiperone / Q000378:metabolism; D013239:Stereotyped Behavior / Q000187:drug effects
D000431:Ethanol; D013134:Spiperone; D006220:Haloperidol; D001058:Apomorphine