title: Amitriptyline treatment under chronic stress conditions: effect on circulating catecholamines and anxiety in early maternally separated rats.
abstract: The aim of this work was to determine the effect of amitriptyline (AMI) on peripheral outcomes such as plasma epinephrine (E) and norepinephrine (NE) concentration and anxiety-like behavior displayed in the plus maze test in adult male Wistar rats under variable chronic stress and daily oral administration of AMI (5 mg/kg). Animals were previously isolated from the mother for 4.5 hr every day for the first 3 weeks of life. Administration of the antidepressant AMI reduced anxiety-like behavior in animals submitted only to chronic stress but not in early maternally separated (MS) subjects or in animals subjected to the two types of stresses.
authors.affiliation: Catedra de Fisiologia Animal, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas, Fisicas y Naturales, Universidad Nacional de Cordoba, Cordoba, Argentina.
authors.forename: Evelin M
authors.initials: EM
authors.lastname: Cotella
authors.forename: Ivan Mestres
authors.initials: IM
authors.lastname: Lascano
authors.forename: Gloria M
authors.initials: GM
authors.lastname: Levin
authors.forename: Marta M
authors.initials: MM
authors.lastname: Suarez
mesh_terms: D000639:Amitriptyline / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D000818:Animals; D000929:Antidepressive Agents, Tricyclic / Q000627:therapeutic use; D001007:Anxiety / Q000188:drug therapy*; D004837:Epinephrine / Q000097:blood*; D008297:Male; D008426:Maternal Deprivation; D018782:Maze Learning / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology; D009638:Norepinephrine / Q000097:blood*; D051381:Rats; D017208:Rats, Wistar; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000188:drug therapy*
chemical_list: D000929:Antidepressive Agents, Tricyclic; D000639:Amitriptyline; D009638:Norepinephrine; D004837:Epinephrine