Bright artificial light subsensitizes a central muscarinic mechanism

Bright artificial light subsensitizes a central muscarinic mechanism.

Supersensitivity of a muscarinic mechanism is implicated in the pathophysiology of depression. Bright artificial light is efficacious in the treatment of Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD). We studied the effect of constant bright light (11,500 lux) on the sensitivity of adult, male rats to oxotremorine, 1.5 mg/kg ip, using a repeated measures design. Oxotremorine challenges were proceeded by th...

Bright artificial light produces subsensitivity to nicotine.

Bright artificial light is a treatment for seasonal depression. Eleven (11) rats were exposed to bright artificial light (11,500 lux) for two consecutive weeks. The thermic response to nicotine was measured prior to light exposure and after one and two weeks of treatment. The thermic response to nicotine at baseline was -1.69 +/- 0.25 degrees C (mean +/- SEM). The thermic response to nicotine w...

Bright artificial light produces subsensitivity to clonidine.

The authors used a thermoregulation paradigm to test the hypothesis that chronic treatment with bright artificial light produces subsensitivity to the hypothermic effects of clonidine, an alpha 2-agonist. One week of treatment produced blunting of the hypothermic response to clonidine (p less than 0.00001). These findings are consistent with previous reports that somatic treatments for depressi...

Desipramine subsensitizes nicotinic mechanism involved in regulating core temperature.

Desipramine HCl, 10 mg/kg i.p. twice daily, produced subsensitivity to the hypothermic effects of nicotine, 1 mg/kg, after 1 and 2 weeks of treatment in male Sprague-Dawley rats, Phenelzine sulfate, fluoxetine HCl, and bright artificial light produced the same effect. The capacity of three chemically distinct classes of anti-depressants and bright artificial light (a treatment for seasonal depr...

Bright Storage of Light