title: Local salsolinol modulates dopamine extracellular levels from rat nucleus accumbens: shell/core differences.
abstract: Salsolinol (SAL), a condensation product of dopamine and acetaldehyde that appears in the rat and human brain after ethanol ingestion, has been largely implicated in the aetiology of alcoholism. Although the behavioural consequences of systemic or intracerebral SAL administrations have been described, the neurochemical effects of pharmacologically relevant doses of SAL and other tetrahydroisoquinolines (THIQs) in the brain areas involved in alcohol addiction are practically unknown. To gain an insight into this topic, male Wistar rats were stereotaxically implanted with one concentric microdialysis probe in either the shell or the core of the nucleus accumbens (NAc). Treatments involved local administration of 0.1, 5 and 25 microM SAL for 20 min through the dialysis probe. Dopamine (DA) concentrations in the shell or core of the NAc were on-line analyzed every 20 min by HPLC with electrochemical detection. Implantation of the probe was histologically evaluated at the end of the experiments. Our results indicate that dialysis application of 5 and 25 microM SAL into the core increased the dialysate levels of DA. Conversely, the administration of the same doses of this drug into the shell significantly reduced the DA levels in this subregion. In conclusion, these data reveal that local application of SAL affects the DA levels in the NAc subterritories in a region-specific manner. These findings may prove useful in probing CNS sites and mechanisms involved in alcohol consumption.
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Farmacia y Tecnología Farmacéutica, Universidad de Valencia, Avda Vicente Andrés Estellés s/n, 46100 Burjassot, Spain.
authors.forename: Lucía
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Hipólito
authors.forename: María José
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Sánchez-Catalán
authors.forename: Luis
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Granero
authors.forename: Ana
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Polache
mesh_terms: D000079:Acetaldehyde / Q000378:metabolism; D020268:Alcohol-Induced Disorders, Nervous System / Q000378:metabolism / Q000503:physiopathology; D000437:Alcoholism / Q000378:metabolism / Q000503:physiopathology; D000818:Animals; D002851:Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid; D004298:Dopamine / Q000378:metabolism*; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D015536:Down-Regulation / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology; D000431:Ethanol / Q000378:metabolism; D045604:Extracellular Fluid / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000378:metabolism*; D007546:Isoquinolines / Q000494:pharmacology*; D008297:Male; D017551:Microdialysis; D009714:Nucleus Accumbens / Q000166:cytology / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000378:metabolism*; D051381:Rats; D017208:Rats, Wistar; D012201:Reward; D009435:Synaptic Transmission / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology; D015854:Up-Regulation / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology
chemical_list: D007546:Isoquinolines; D000431:Ethanol; C036617:salsolinol; D000079:Acetaldehyde; D004298:Dopamine