title: Effect of acute caffeine on severity of harmaline induced tremor in rats.
abstract: Recent studies suggest an association between caffeine consumption and tremor. However, the available literature is scanty and inconclusive. The present study was undertaken to investigate the effect of acute caffeine treatment on harmaline induced tremors in the rat. Four groups of male Sprague-Dawley rats (six animals in each group) weighing 88+/-2 g were administered harmaline (10 mg/kg, intraperitoneally (i.p.)) for inducing experimental tremors. The rats in group 1 served as controls and received normal saline, whereas the animals in groups 2, 3 and 4 were given caffeine (i.p.) at doses of 50, 100 and 150 mg/kg, respectively 60 min after harmaline administration. The latency of onset, intensity and duration of tremor and electromyographic (EMG) responses were recorded. Treatment of rats with caffeine resulted in a significant increase in the intensity and duration of harmaline induced tremors. Caffeine also enhanced the EMG amplitude in harmaline treated animals. In conclusion, the results of this study suggest that acute treatment with caffeine significantly potentiates the severity of harmaline induced tremors in rats.
authors.affiliation: Neuroscience Research Group, Armed Forces Hospital, P.O. Box 7897 (W-912), Riyadh 11159, Saudi Arabia.
authors.forename: Saleh
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Al-Deeb
authors.forename: Khalaf
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Al-Moutaery
authors.forename: Mohammed
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Arshaduddin
authors.forename: Nabil
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Biary
authors.forename: Mohammad
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Tariq
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002110:Caffeine / Q000009:adverse effects*; D000697:Central Nervous System Stimulants / Q000009:adverse effects*; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D004576:Electromyography; D006246:Harmaline; D007274:Injections, Intraperitoneal; D008297:Male; D008996:Monoamine Oxidase Inhibitors; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D014202:Tremor / Q000139:chemically induced / Q000503:physiopathology*
chemical_list: D000697:Central Nervous System Stimulants; D008996:Monoamine Oxidase Inhibitors; D002110:Caffeine; D006246:Harmaline