Abstract
The ‘pinch-induced’ model of catalepsy in the mouse was disrupted by atropine sulfate (4 mg/kg IP), confirming an earlier finding, and also by the antinicotinic mecamylamine (4 mg/kg). Either anticholinergic, when given concurrently with haloperidol (5 mg/kg), interfered with the typical haloperidol-induced enhancement of catalepsy. In mice pretreated with a peripheral cholinergic blocker, the cholinomimetic pilocarpine (10 mg/kg) enhanced catalepsy. The dopamine (DA) agonist apomorphine (5 mg/kg) reversed the enhancement that was normally caused by pilocarpine. Apomorphine did not stimulate open field locomotion in mice that were pretreated with pilocarpine. This lack of correlation between catalepsy and open field activity indicates that catalepsy in a unique state that involves more than mere absence of movement. The DA mechanisms, thus, appear to be specifically antagonistic to catalepsy or, conversely, cholinergic mediation of catalepsy involves reduced influence of DA systems.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Amir S, Brown ZW, Amit Z, Ornstein K (1981) Body pinch induces longlasting cataleptic-like immobility in mice: Behavioral characterization and the effect of naloxone. Life Sci 28:1189–1194
Carey RJ, DeVeaugh-Geiss J (1982) Chronic benztropine and haloperidol administration induces behaviorally equivalent pharmacological hypersensitivities separately but not in combination. Psychopharmacology 76:341–345
Ezrin-Waters C, Muller P, Seeman P (1976) Catalepsy induced by morphine or haloperidol: Effects of apomorphine and anticholinergic drugs. Can J Physiol Pharmacol 54:516–519
Klemm WR (1977) Identity of sensory and motor systems that are critical to the immobility reflex (‘animal hypnosis’). Psych Rec 27:145–159
Klemm WR (1983) Experimental catalepsy: Influences of cholinergic transmission in restraint-induced catalepsy. Experientia 39:228–230
Koffer KB, Berney S, Hornykiewicz O (1978) The role of the corpus striatum in neuroleptic- and narcotic-induced catalepsy. Pscychopharmacology 47:81–86
Monnier M, Romanowski W (1962) Les systemes cholinoceptifs cerebraux — actions de l'acetylcholine, de la physostigmine, pilocarpine et de GABA. Electroencephalogr Clin Neurophysiol. 14:486–500
Ornstein K (1980) Stress-induced facilitation of opiate catalepsy in the rat: A reply to R. J. Katz. Prog Neuropsychopharmacol 5:281–282
Sanberg PR (1980) Haloperidol-induced catalepsy is mediated by postsynaptic dopamine receptors. Nature 284:472–473
Skirboll LR, Grace AA, Bunney BS (Dopamine auto- and postsynaptic receptors: Electrophysiological evidence for differential sensitivity to dopamine agonists. Science 206:80–82
Stanley ME, Glick SD (1976) Interaction of drug effects with testing procedures in the measurement of catalepsy. Neuropharmacology 15:393–394
Zablocka B, Esplin DW (1963) Central excitatory and depressant effects of pilocarpine in rats and mice. J Pharmacol Exp. Ther 140: 162–169
Zetler G (1968) Cataleptic state and hypothermia in mice caused by central cholinergic stimulation and antagonized by anticholinergic drugs. Int J Neuropharmacol 7:325–335
Zetler G (1971) Pharmacological differentiation of ‘nicotinic’ and ‘muscarinic’ catalepsy. Neuropharmacology 10:289–296
Zetler G (1973) Drug-induced catalepsy as influenced by convulsant and anticonvulsant drugs. Neuropharmacology 12:741–749
Zetler G (1981) Differential cataleptogenic and antistereotypical effects of caerulein and haloperidol. Neuropharmacology 20:681–686
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Klemm, W.R. Cholinergic-dopaminergic interactions in experimental catalepsy. Psychopharmacology 81, 24–27 (1983). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00439268
Received:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00439268