Electroconvulsive therapy has been used in the treatment o f major depression. Its effectiveness
is estimated to be superior to that o f tricyclic antidepressants, particulary in severe,
delusional endogenous depressions with suicidal ideation. It i...
Electroconvulsive therapy has been used in the treatment o f major depression. Its effectiveness
is estimated to be superior to that o f tricyclic antidepressants, particulary in severe,
delusional endogenous depressions with suicidal ideation. It is reported that electroconvulsive
shock(ECS) affects a variety o f putative neurotransmitters ; norepinephrine, dopamine,
serotonin, acetylcholine, y-aminobutyric acid and endorphins. Since most studies were performed
on whole brain or limited area of brain and measured only specific monoamine,
changes in the levels o f biogenic amines in discrete brain regions or difference between
the regions might have been masked.
The present investigation was undertaken to elucidate the effects of single or repeated
ECS on the regional levels of biogenic amines in rat brain and cerebrospinal fluid. The
male Sprague-Dawley rats were used. After single or repeated ECS, blocks of tissue were
obtained from the frontal cortex, corpus striatum, hippocampus, thalamus, and hypothalamus,
immediately after the collection of cerebrospinal fluid from cisterma magna. The concentration
of biogenic amines(norepinephrine, dopamine, 50hydroxytryptamine (5-HT)) and
their metabolites(3, 4-dihydroxyphenylacetic a cid (D O P A C ), homovamillic acid(H V A ), 5-
hydroxyindoleacetic acid(5-HIAA)) were measured by means of high performance liquid
chromatography-electrochemical detector( HPLC - ECD ).
The results obtained are as follows :
1) In the normal rat, the concentration of norepinephrine was the highest in hypothalamus.
Dopamine, DOPAC and HVA were highest in corpus striatum, and 5-HT and 5-HIAA
were highest in hypothalamus. Epinephrine was not detectable in any part of the brain
tissue nor in cerebrospinal fluid.
2) In single ECS group, the concentration of DOPAC was decreased and that of dopamine
was increased in corpus striatum. 5-HIAA was decreased in hypothalamus by single ECS.
3) In case of repeated ECS, the concentration of norepinephrine was decreased in frontal
cortex and that of D O P A C was decreased in hypothalamus. 5-HT was increased in striatum.
The ratio of 5-HIAA/5-HT was increased in all brain region tested, especially in frontal
cortex and hypothalamus by repeated ECS.
4) In cerebrospinal fluid,DOPAC , 5-HIAA and H VA were detectable. While single ECS
did not change the concentration of these metabolites, repeated ECS increased DOPAC