Homomeric 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT)(3A) and heteromeric 5-HT(3AB) receptors mediate rapid excitatory responses to serotonin in the central and peripheral nervous systems. The alkaloid morphine, in addition to being a mu-opioid receptor agonist, is a potent competitive inhibitor of 5-HT(3) receptors. We examined whether methadone, an opioid often used to treat morphine dependence, also exhibite...

Previous studies have established a role for 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT)(2B) and 5-HT(1B) receptors in mediating enhanced contraction to serotonin (5-HT) in arteries from hypertensive deoxycorticosterone acetate (DOCA)-salt rats. To determine whether the observed increase in responsiveness was due to upregulation of 5-HT receptors, we used Western analysis to measure 5-HT(1B) and 5-HT(2B) recept...

It is well established that serotonin (5-HT; 5-hydroxytryptamine) plays a role in mammalian regulation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis via the 5-HT receptor subtype 1A (5-HT(1A)). To date, there has not been a comprehensive investigation of the molecular, pharmacological and physiological aspects of the 5-HT(1A) receptor and its role in the activation of the hypothalamic-pituit...

Serotonin 5-HT 2C receptors belong to the 5-HT 2 family, which includes 5-HT 2A and 5-HT 2B receptors. All three share similarities in their molecular structure, pharmacology, and signal transduction pathways (Barnes and Sharp 1999; Hoyer et al. 1994). Initially named 5-HT 1C, based on the conventions for naming serotonin receptors at the time of its discovery, it was later renamed 5-HT 2C rece...

We previously demonstrated colocalization of serotonin 1A (5-HT(1A)) and serotonin 2A (5-HT(2A)) receptors in oxytocin and corticotropin-releasing factor neurons in the hypothalamic paraventricular nucleus (PVN). Because a functional imbalance between hypothalamic 5-HT(1A) and 5-HT(2A) receptors has been implicated in several neuropsychiatric disorders, in this study we investigated whether acu...

Recently, lipophenols (or phenolipids), which are composed of a fatty acid (FA) and phenolic core such as hydroxytyrosol (HT), have been detected in extra virgin olive oils (EVOO), promoted by the esterification reaction between FA HT unique lipophenolic molecule (HT-FAs). However, levels HT-FAs, well potential alterations their concentrations during storage EVOO, still unexplored. Thus, presen...

In vivo dialysis coupled to high-performance liquid chromatography with electrochemical detection (HPLC-EC) was used for measurement of extracellular serotonin (5-HT) in the hypothalamus of unanesthetized, unrestrained rats. A series of experiments was carried out to determine if 5-HT in the dialysis solution was released from nerve terminals. Fenfluramine, a 5-HT-releasing drug and fluoxetine,...

The distribution of serotonin (5-HT)-immunoreactive elements in peripheral organs of the sea-slugs Pleurobranchaea californica and Tritonia diomedea was studied in cryostat sections. For Pleurobranchaea, 5-HT-immunoreactive (5-HT-IR) neuron cell bodies were found only in the central nervous system (CNS); 5-HT-IR cell bodies were not observed in foot, tentacles, rhinophores, oral veil, mouth, bu...

The aim of the present study is to test a hypothesis that 5-HT(1A) and 5-HT(2C) receptors in the amygdala play an important role in the regulation of anxiety behaviors. We examined alterations in anxiety-like behaviors after manipulation of the expression of 5-HT(1A) and 5-HT(2C) receptors in the amygdala using recombinant adenovirus approaches. Recombinant adenoviruses containing a 5-HT(1A) pr...

Serotonin (5-hydroxytryptamine: 5-HT) affects numerous functions in the gut, such as secretion, muscle contraction, and enteric nervous activity, and therefore to clarify details of 5-HT's actions leads to good therapeutic strategies for gut functional disorders. The role of interstitial cells of Cajal (ICC), as pacemaker cells, has been recognised relatively recently. We thus investigated 5-HT...