Abstract
Recent evidence suggests that the cholinergic and serotonergic systems interact in the brain to regulate different behavioral and physiological functions.34,40 Anatomical studies have shown that cholinergic and serotonergic interaction may occur in several brain regions.35,38 First, the interaction may occur in the basal forebrain as the basal forebrain cholinergic neurons may be directly modulated by ascending serotonergic fibers. Second, hippocampus and cortex may receive a diffuse input of fine axons (type I) from the serotonergic raphe dorsalis and another input of beaded axons (type II) from the serotonergic raphe medianus that has anatomically a restricted pattern of termination.12,37 Cholinergic fibers from the nucleus basalis and medial septum, respectively, also innervate cortex and hippocampus.35 Electrophysiological studies have revealed that hippocampal, thalamic and cortical electrical activity is regulated by cholinergic and serotonergic systems. For example, the serotonergic raphe dorsalis lesion aggravated the increase of waking immobility-related high-voltage spindles in rat neocortex induced by cholinergic nucleus basalis lesion.25 Vanderwolf 40 showed that the pharmacological blockade of both cholinergic and serotonergic function by systemic injections of scopolamine (a cholinergic antagonist) and p-chlorophenylanine (PCPA, an inhibitor of the synthesis of serotonin) abolished completely electrocortical desynchronized low voltage fast activity.
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Riekkinen, M., Riekkinen, P. (1995). Combined Nicotinic and Muscarinic Cholinergic and Serotonergic Blockade Selectively Impair Acquisition of Spatial Navigation. In: Hanin, I., Yoshida, M., Fisher, A. (eds) Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s Diseases. Advances in Behavioral Biology, vol 44. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4757-9145-7_54
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