Mao-Inhibitors Revisited I: Adrenaline (A) and Noradrenaline (NA) in Cerebrospinal Fluid (CSF) in Isocarboxazide treated Rats

Abstract

For many years the research on biology of depressions has focused on noradrenaline and serotonin. However, it has been known for nearly 10 years that adrenalineis present in neurons in the brain (Hökfelt et al., 1974), and experimental studies indicate that hypothalamic adrenaline is of central origin (Mefford et al., 1981). Using a highly specific and sensitive isotope derivative technique we are now able to measure adrenaline in CSF and brain (Christensen et al., 1980; Gjerris et al., 1981; Christensen et al., 1983). Before entering clinical studies of depressed patients to test a possible relation between changes in central adrenaline and clinical outcome of treatment with different antidepressant principles, we found it valuable first to investigate the influence of antidepressant drugs on adrenaline and noradrenaline in rat brains and to see, whether a change in brain concentrations was reflected in the CSF.