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Hypophagia and induction of serotonin transporter gene expression in raphe nuclei of male and female rats after short-term fluoxetine treatment

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Abstract

Serotonin (5-HT) is one of the regulators of feeding in humans. Drugs acting on the serotoninergic system are used to treat bulimia nervosa and to enhance the effect of hypocaloric diets in overweight subjects. They act rapidly to normalise feeding when used to treat eating-related problems. To explore the role of the 5-HT transporter (serotonin transporter (SERT)) in the short-term action of serotonin selective reuptake inhibitor fluoxetine, rats were i.p. given the drug for five consecutive days. Acute administration of fluoxetine in male and female rats produced a strong reduction in food intake, an effect that held up when daily treatment was maintained for five consecutive days. This reduction translated into a diminution of body weight that was statistically significant in the case of the males. As a reflection of the body weight change in rats killed after the fifth daily drug injection, retroperitoneal fat pad also decreased; a diminution that was statistically significant in the case of male rats. In these conditions, plasma leptin levels of both male and female rats were lower than in untreated animals. While acute fluoxetine administration did not modify SERT gene expression, subchronic drug treatment increased the content of SERT mRNA in the midbrain raphe complex of both rat genders. These findings may contribute to explain the role of SERT in fluoxetine action on binging and as an adjunct to hypocaloric diets.

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Acknowledgments

This study was supported by grants from Danone-Universidad Complutense de Madrid (Refs. PR248/01-10147 and PR238/00-9449).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Unidad de Cartografía Cerebral, Instituto Pluridisciplinar, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, 28040, Madrid, Spain

    Nuria Lauzurica, Luis García-García, José A. Fuentes & Mercedes Delgado

  2. Departamento de Farmacología, Facultad de Farmacia, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, 28040, Madrid, Spain

    Luis García-García & José A. Fuentes

  3. Departamento de Bioquímica, Fisiología y Genética Molecular, Facultad de Ciencias de la Salud, Universidad Rey Juan Carlos, Alcorcón, 28922, Madrid, Spain

    Nuria Lauzurica

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  1. Nuria Lauzurica
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  2. Luis García-García
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  3. José A. Fuentes
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  4. Mercedes Delgado
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Correspondence to Mercedes Delgado.

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Lauzurica, N., García-García, L., Fuentes, J.A. et al. Hypophagia and induction of serotonin transporter gene expression in raphe nuclei of male and female rats after short-term fluoxetine treatment. J Physiol Biochem 69, 69–74 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13105-012-0188-5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s13105-012-0188-5

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