Antidepressants from three different classes produce different effects on active behaviors in the FST. The effects of antidepressants were augmented following chronic administration for 14 days, especially when given at low doses. This suggests that modifications of the FST can be used to examine the onset of action of antidepressant agents produced by long-term administration.

Anatomic and electrophysiologic studies have provided evidence that CRF meets some of the criteria as a neurotransmitter in the noradrenergic nucleus, the locus coeruleus (LC), although some of the criteria have yet to be satisfied. Thus, immunohistochemical findings suggest that CRF innervates the LC, but this must be confirmed at the ultrastructural level. CRF alters discharge activity of LC neurons and these effects are mimicked by some stressors. Moreover, the effects of hemodynamic stress on LC activity are prevented by a CRF antagonist. However, it has not been demonstrated that stimulation of CRF neurons that project to the LC activates the LC or that the effects of such stimulation are prevented by a CRF antagonist. The role of CRF in LC activation by stressors other than hemodynamic stress needs to be determined. It could be predicted that the effects of CRF neurotransmission in the LC during stress would enhance information processing concerning the stressor or stimuli related to the stressor by LC target neurons. One consequence of this appears to be increased arousal. Although this may be adaptive in the response to an acute challenge, it could be predicted that chronic CRF release in the LC would result in persistently elevated LC discharge and norepinephrine release in targets. This could be associated with hyperarousal and loss of selective attention as occurs in certain psychiatric diseases. Manipulation of endogenous CRF systems may be a novel way in which to treat psychiatric diseases characterized by these maladaptive effects.

Depletion of serotonin prevented the behavioral effects of the selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor fluoxetine in the rat FST. Furthermore, depletion of serotonin had no impact on the behavioral effects induced by the selective norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor, desipramine. The effects of antidepressant drugs on FST-induced immobility may be exerted by distinguishable contributions from different neurotransmitter systems.

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Mice unable to synthesize norepinephrine (NE) and epinephrine due to targeted disruption of the dopamine ␤-hydroxylase gene, Dbh, were used to critically test roles for NE in mediating acute behavioral changes elicited by different classes of antidepressants. To this end, we used the tail suspension test, one of the most widely used paradigms for assessing antidepressant activity and depression-related behaviors in normal and genetically modified mice. Dbh ؊/؊ mice failed to respond to the behavioral effects of various antidepressants, including the NE reuptake inhibitors desipramine and reboxetine, the monoamine oxidase inhibitor pargyline, and the atypical antidepressant bupropion, even though they did not differ in baseline immobility from Dbh ؉/؊ mice, which have normal levels of NE. Surprisingly, the effects of the selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) fluoxetine, sertraline, and paroxetine were also absent or severely attenuated in the Dbh ؊/؊ mice. In contrast, citalopram (the most selective SSRI) was equally effective at reducing immobility in mice with and without NE. Restoration of NE by using L-threo-3,4-dihydroxyphenylserine reinstated the behavioral effects of both desipramine and paroxetine in Dbh ؊/؊ mice, thus demonstrating that the reduced sensitivity to antidepressants is related to NE function, as opposed to developmental abnormalities resulting from chronic NE deficiency. Microdialysis studies demonstrated that the ability of fluoxetine to increase hippocampal serotonin was blocked in Dbh ؊/؊ mice, whereas citalopram's effect was only partially attenuated. These data show that NE plays an important role in mediating acute behavioral and neurochemical actions of many antidepressants, including most SSRIs.A ntidepressant medications are thought to elicit their therapeutic effects by increasing synaptic concentrations of the monoamines serotonin (5-HT) and͞or norepinephrine (NE) (1). Most tricyclic antidepressants enhance NE and 5-HT transmission because they inhibit presynaptic reuptake, although most of these drugs have affinity for other neurotransmitter receptors that contribute to their side effect profile. More recently, selective 5-HT reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) have become widely prescribed because of their improved safety profile from limited interaction with other neurotransmitter receptors (1). However, some investigators have recently challenged whether SSRIs produce effects selectively on the serotonergic system over the noradrenergic and dopaminergic systems (2, 3). Indeed, a number of in vivo microdialysis studies have shown that acute (4-6) and chronic (7-9) treatment with certain SSRIs can increase extracellular concentrations of NE in addition to that of 5-HT.Attempts to delineate the role of NE in the behavioral effects of antidepressants have used inhibition of synthetic enzymes to deplete the neurotransmitter or chemical lesion techniques to destroy NE terminals. However, many depletion agents, such as the tyrosine hydroxylase inhibitor ␣-methyl-p-tyrosine or the v...

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