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Anxiolytic-like effects of somatostatin isoforms SST 14 and SST 28 in two animal models (Rattus norvegicus) after intra-amygdalar and intra-septal microinfusions

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Abstract

Rationale and objectives

Somatostatin (SST) isoforms, SST 14 and SST 28, inhibit regulatory hormones in the periphery (e.g., growth hormone) and are widely distributed in the brain. In recent experiments, intracerebroventricular (ICV) SST produced anxiolytic-like effects in both behavioral and electrophysiological models. The sites of action of these anxiolytic effects in the brain, however, and the relative contributions of SST 14 and SST 28 to these effects are unknown.

Materials and methods

Anxiolytic effects were assessed in the plus-maze and shock-probe tests after (1) intra-amygdalar microinfusion of SST 14 (0.5 or 3 μg per hemisphere) or SST 28 (3 μg per hemisphere), (2) intra-septal microinfusion of SST 14 (0.5 or 1.5 μg per hemisphere) or SST 28 (1.5 μg per hemisphere), or (3) intra-striatal microinfusion of SST 14 (3 μg per hemisphere).

Results

Intra-amygdalar and intra-septal microinfusions of SST 14 and SST 28 produced robust anxiolytic-like effects in the behavioral tests, unlike intra-striatal microinfusions. The magnitude of the anxiolytic effects in the amygdala and septum were comparable to those found previously with ICV SST 14, ICV L-779976, an SST (sst2) receptor agonist, and ICV diazepam, a classical benzodiazepine anxiolytic.

Conclusions

SST receptors in the septum and amygdala are responsive to both SST 14 and SST 28, but not those in the striatum. Although no obvious differences in the anxiolytic-like effects of the isoforms were detected, quantitative or even qualitative differences in their specific anxiolytic effects may occur in different sub-regions of the septum and amygdala, as has been found for benzodiazepine anxiolytics.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychology and Division of Neuroscience, P-449 Biological Sciences Building, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, T6G 2E9, Canada

    Michelle Yeung & Dallas Treit

  2. Center for Neuroscience, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada

    Dallas Treit

  3. Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Belmont, MA, USA

    Elif Engin

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  1. Michelle Yeung
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Correspondence to Dallas Treit.

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Yeung, M., Engin, E. & Treit, D. Anxiolytic-like effects of somatostatin isoforms SST 14 and SST 28 in two animal models (Rattus norvegicus) after intra-amygdalar and intra-septal microinfusions. Psychopharmacology 216, 557–567 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00213-011-2248-x

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