title: Interaction between repeated restraint stress and concomitant midazolam administration on sweet food ingestion in rats.
abstract: Emotional changes can influence feeding behavior. Previous studies have shown that chronically stressed animals present increased ingestion of sweet food, an effect reversed by a single dose of diazepam administered before testing the animals. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the response of animals chronically treated with midazolam and/or submitted to repeated restraint stress upon the ingestion of sweet food. Male adult Wistar rats were divided into two groups: controls and exposed to restraint 1 h/day, 5 days/week for 40 days. Both groups were subdivided into two other groups treated or not with midazolam (0.06 mg/ml in their drinking water during the 40-day treatment). The animals were placed in a lighted area in the presence of 10 pellets of sweet food (Froot loops). The number of ingested pellets was measured during a period of 3 min, in the presence or absence of fasting. The group chronically treated with midazolam alone presented increased ingestion when compared to control animals (control group: 2.0 +/- 0.44 pellets and midazolam group: 3.60 +/- 0.57 pellets). The group submitted to restraint stress presented an increased ingestion compared to controls (control group: 2.0 +/- 0.44 pellets and stressed group: 4.18 +/- 0.58 pellets). Chronically administered midazolam reduced the ingestion in stressed animals (stressed/water group: 4.18 +/- 0.58 pellets; stressed/midazolam group: 3.2 +/- 0.49 pellets). Thus, repeated stress increases appetite for sweet food independently of hunger and chronic administration of midazolam can decrease this behavioral effect.
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Bioquímica, Instituto de Ciências Básicas da Saúde, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, RS, Brasil.
authors.forename: P P
authors.initials: PP
authors.lastname: Silveira
authors.forename: M H
authors.initials: MH
authors.lastname: Xavier
authors.forename: F H
authors.initials: FH
authors.lastname: Souza
authors.forename: L P
authors.initials: LP
authors.lastname: Manoli
authors.forename: R M
authors.initials: RM
authors.lastname: Rosat
authors.forename: M B
authors.initials: MB
authors.lastname: Ferreira
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Dalmaz
mesh_terms: D000704:Analysis of Variance; D000818:Animals; D014151:Anti-Anxiety Agents / Q000494:pharmacology*; D001835:Body Weight; D019422:Dietary Sucrose; D005247:Feeding Behavior / Q000187:drug effects*; D008297:Male; D008874:Midazolam / Q000494:pharmacology*; D051381:Rats; D017208:Rats, Wistar; D012149:Restraint, Physical; D013315:Stress, Psychological
chemical_list: D014151:Anti-Anxiety Agents; D019422:Dietary Sucrose; D008874:Midazolam