ISSN:
1432-1106
Keywords:
Carrageenin
;
Hyperalgesic inflammation
;
Rats
;
Low dose naloxone
;
Behavioural test
;
VB thalamic neurones
Source:
Springer Online Journal Archives 1860-2000
Topics:
Medicine
Notes:
Summary We have previously described the paradoxical antinociceptive effect of low doses of an opiate antagonist, naloxone, in rats suffering from chronic arthritis induced by Freund's adjuvant. In the present work, the appearance of this naloxone sensitivity was studied, using a model of inflammatory hyperalgesia with a more rapid onset, namely carrageenin-induced rat paw edema. In these animals, an extremely low dose of naloxone (3 μg/kg i.v.), induced a clear antinociceptive effect (as gauged by the vocalisation threshold to paw pressure), which was observed for both the edematous and the contralateral hind-paw. Small and transient 1 h after carrageenin injection, this effect increased progressively 4 h and 24 h later, reaching a level comparable to that observed with morphine 1 mg/kg i.v. in normal rats, at 24 h. Electrophysiological studies performed in parallel, confirmed the behavioural data so that 24 h after the injection of carrageenin, naloxone (3 μg/kg i.v.) reduced the VB thalamic neuronal responses elicited by stimulation of the inflamed paw by 50%. Hypothesis concerning the mechanisms of the paradoxical action of naloxone in models of inflammatory hyperalgesia are discussed.
Type of Medium:
Electronic Resource
URL:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/BF00248233
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