John N.D. Wurpel

Motor disturbances and neurotoxicity induced by centrally administered somatostatin and vasopressin in conscious rats: interactive effects of two neuropeptides

Barrel rotation (BR) is an abnormal, long-axis rotation induced by intracerebroventricular (i.c.v.) injections of peptides, including somatostatin (SRIF) and arginine-vasopressin (AVP). This study examined the effects of two i.c.v. doses of SRIF and combined injections of SRIF and AVP in conscious, adult Wistar and Sprague-Dawley rats. Mortality after i.c.v. SRIF was dose-dependent; 0/16 rats died after a 20 microgram dose, while 21/43 died after 40 micrograms SRIF. On the other hand, BR incidence was similar after the two doses, but the hazard function of the BR latency data was shifted to the left by the higher dose. Although the incidence data imply that BR and mortality are independent, the hazard function of BR latency data is predictive of mortality. An interaction study employing a combined i.c.v. dose of 20 micrograms SRIF and 0.5 micrograms AVP established that the effects add non-linearly. This is illustrated by a marked increment in mortality (0/16 for 20 micrograms SRIF, 1/25 for 0.5 micrograms AVP and 12/18 for SRIF + AVP). The hazard plot shows a similar, non-linear interaction. In addition, SRIF, but not AVP, produced a characteristic pattern of Purkinje cell death in cerebellar regions projecting to the fastigial and lateral vestibular nuclei. These results imply that SRIF and AVP act at independent sites to produce BR and mortality, and that the effects summate non-linearly at a common central site. This raises the issue of whether these neuropeptides, endogenous in human CSF, interact to produce similar biological effects.

Central effects of aldosterone infused into the rat subcommissural organ region

D-Aldosterone (5 ng/microliter/h) was infused for 6 days into the region of the subcommissural organ (SCO) of conscious, adult male Sprague-Dawley rats. Aldosterone increased urinary sodium loss and the sodium/potassium ratio. Although probably central in origin, these effects still occurred when cannulae were displaced up to 1 mm from the targeted SCO placement. Aldosterone decreased adrenal medullary cross-sectional area without affecting cell density. This effect was highly dependent on proper cannula placement and was not observed when the cannula tip was not in contact with the cerebrospinal fluid of the pineal recess over the rostral two-thirds of the SCO. We conclude that aldosterone increases sodium excretion by an action in the SCO and/or adjacent structures. We also postulate a negative trophic relationship between mineralocorticoids and the adrenal medulla mediated by the SCO.

Vasopressin release induced by water deprivation: effects of centrally administered saralasin.

Uncertainty exists as to whether endogenous angiotensin activates brain mechanisms controlling vasopressin (AVP) secretion during dehydration. We injected various doses of saralasin into a lateral cerebroventricle (IVT) of conscious, male rats deprived of water for 48 h and killed them at different times. The concentration of AVP in the plasma (p[AVP]), measured by radioimmunoassay, was unaffected by saralasin. IVT pretreatment with 1-Sar-8-Ile-angiotensin II blocked maximal AVP release by IVT angiotensin, but this pretreatment did not reduce p[AVP] after 24, 48 or 72 h water deprivation. A 3-hour continuous IVT infusion of CSF or saralasin (10 micrograms/h) into 48-hour water-deprived rats revealed equivalent p[AVP] and urine volumes. When the infusions were continued for 3 h more with water available, control and saralasin-treated rats: (a) drank at similar rates, (b) excreted similar amounts of urine, and (c) reduced their p[AVP] levels to the same extent. IVT saralasin did not affect p[AVP] of rats dehydrated with hypertonic NaCl. Combined IVT saralasin and atropine reduced p[AVP] of 48-hour water deprived rats about 30% (p less than 0.05). We conclude that redundancy exists for sensing, integrating and releasing vasopressin in dehydrated rats.

Regional cerebral glucose utilization during vasopressin-induced Barrel rotations or Bicuculline-induced seizures in rats

Regional cerebral metabolic rates of glucose (rCMRglu) were measured in conscious rats grouped according to three treatments: control, bicuculline (5.5 mg/kg s.c.), and intracerebroventricular arginine vasopressin (0.5 micrograms/5 microliter). Rats in the latter group were pre-exposed to the peptide 48 h earlier to render them 100% susceptible to a motor output termed barrel rotation (BR). Marked increases in rCMRglu occurred in all brain areas investigated after bicuculline. Increases after intracerebroventricular arginine vasopressin were smaller and occurred in fewer brain areas. Opposite to bicuculline, arginine vasopressin reduced rCMRglu in hippocampus and auditory cortex. The data confirm marked stimulation of rCMRglu during bicuculline-induced seizures and provide initial data for an endogenous peptide that causes BR. Generalized seizures and BR may share some neural substrates, but they produce distinct changes in rCMRglu. The rCMRglu changes are compatible with the interpretation that BR is initiated by brainstem/cerebellar areas that process visual-vestibular information, with subsequent involvement of higher brain structures.

Cerebrospinal fluid pressure during cerebroventricular infusion of angiotensin and vasopressin

Rationale exists for suspecting that angiotensin (Ang) and arginine vasopressin (AVP) given by the intracerebroventricular (IVT) route can affect cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) pressure. This hypothesis was tested in conscious, unrestrained adult male Sprague-Dawley rats with IVT and left carotid arterial catheters. The rats were infused (IVT) for 30 min with artificial CSF followed by 30 additional minutes with CSF, Ang, (0.6 micrograms/h) AVP (5 or 50 ng/h), or AVP (5 or 50 ng/h) + Ang, (0.6 micrograms/h). Angiotensin evoked a central hypertensive effect (+ 16 mm Hg) and increased CSF pressure from 10 to 16 cm H2O (P less than 0.05). Neither dose of AVP affected blood or CSF pressures. The AVP (5 ng/h) prevented Ang-induced changes in blood and CSF pressures and AVP (50 ng/h) blocked only the Ang-induced rise in CSF pressure. These results raise the possibility that angiotensin and vasopressin participate in the regulation of CSF pressure.

Site-dependent central effects of aldosterone in rats

A relationship between the subcommissural organ (SCO) and the adrenal glands has long been suspected. This report provides further information about the effects of a continuous D-aldosterone infusion into the SCO area of conscious, adult male Sprague-Dawley rats. A 6-day aldosterone infusion (5 ng/h) increased urinary sodium excretion, decreased adrenal medullary cross-sectional area, elevated adrenal corticosterone content and terminal plasma epinephrine concentration. Mineralocorticoid infusions directly into a lateral cerebral ventricle did not affect these parameters but, unlike SCO area infusions, decreased consummatory behavior. Infusions of tritiated aldosterone into the SCO area revealed that radioactivity was mainly confined to dorsomedial portions of the brain near the SCO, whereas the pineal body contained only background radioactivity. The data support the concept that the SCO area interacts with physiological systems related to both the adrenal cortex and medulla.

The role of the adrenal glands in sodium excretion evoked by centrally administered renin.

Abstract Renin or angiotensin, when administered into the central nervous system, increases urinary sodium excretion but the mechanism is undefined. In addition, central angiotensin injections reduce plasma aldosterone concentration. Thus, diminished mineralocorticoid effects on the kidneys may explain the natriuresis. This hypothesis was tested by intracerebroventricular (IVT) renin injections (5 mGU/5 μl) in conscious, hydrated rats pretreated 90 min beforehand with d-aldosterone (20 μg/kg ip). Aldosterone did not affect renin-induced sodium output at 3 and 6 hr, although it reduced the Na/K ratio at 3 hr. Other rats were sham-operated or bilaterally adrenalectomized. Four days later, they were pretreated with aldosterone and given an oral water load followed by IVT renin or saline. Basal sodium excretion in adrenalectomized rats was reduced; natriuresis after renin was still evident but of reduced magnitude compared to sham rats. Although IVT renin and angiotensin lower the plasma aldosterone concentration, the natriuretic effect of IVT renin is independent of mineralocorticoids. Likewise, natriuresis can occur in the absence of the adrenal glands, although the magnitude is reduced.

Eating, Drinking and Urine Output after Prolonged Cerebroventricular Vasopressin Infusions in Rats

Prior studies suggested that centrally administered single doses of vasopressin (VP) do not affect consummatory behavior or peripheral hydration. To reduce uncertainties related to factors of unknown distribution, concentration and duration, we infused VP (0.5 or 50 ng/h) continuously for 5 h or 5 days into a lateral cerebroventricle of conscious male rats. Eating and drinking behavior, as well as urine volume and sodium and potassium output, were unaffected by these treatments. The results suggest that VP, at sites reached from cerebrospinal fluid, does not alter peripheral hydration of rats.