title: Lesion of the median raphe nucleus: a combined behavioral and microdialysis study in rats.
abstract: The purpose of the present study was to investigate the behavioral consequences and the neurochemical correlates of a 5,7-dihydroxytryptamine (5,7-DHT) lesion of the median raphe nucleus (MRN) in rats. Anxiety-related behavior was assessed in the elevated plus maze test on days 5, 14, and 21 after lesioning. In general, behavior of MRN-lesioned rats was unchanged when compared with sham-lesioned or untreated controls. Neurochemically, microinjection of 5,7-DHT into the MRN resulted in 87.5% depletion of hippocampal 5-HT content. Using the in vivo microdialysis technique, the exposure of 5,7-DHT-lesioned rats to the elevated plus-maze failed to increase extracellular 5-HT release (94%) in the hippocampus, as shown in sham-lesioned (150%) or untreated controls (194%). Moreover, application of fenfluramine (10 mg/kg, i.p.) evoked a 10-fold increase in hippocampal extracellular 5-HT levels in sham-lesioned animals, whereas in 5,7-DHT lesioned rats 5-HT was only slightly increased. The results demonstrate, that a marked reduction of 5-HT release from the MRN is not necessarily accompanied by anxiolytic-like behavior.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Medical Faculty (Charité) of the Humboldt University at Berlin, Germany.
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Thomas
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Fink
authors.forename: T R
authors.initials: TR
authors.lastname: Sohr
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Voits
mesh_terms: D015116:5,7-Dihydroxytryptamine / Q000633:toxicity; D000818:Animals; D001522:Behavior, Animal; D006624:Hippocampus / Q000378:metabolism; D008297:Male; D018782:Maze Learning; D017551:Microdialysis; D011903:Raphe Nuclei / Q000502:physiology*; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D012701:Serotonin / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D015116:5,7-Dihydroxytryptamine; D012701:Serotonin