Fluoxetine treatment of rat neonates significantly reduces oxidative stress in the hippocampus and in behavioral indicators of anxiety later in postnatal life

Abstract

The brain, more than any other organ in the body, is vulnerable to oxidative stress damage, owing to its requirement for high levels of oxygenation. This is needed to fulfill its metabolic needs in the face of relatively low levels of protective antioxidants. Recent studies have suggested that oxidative stress is directly involved in the etiology of both eating and anxiety behavior. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of fluoxetine-inhibited serotonin reuptake in nursing rat neonates on behavior and on oxidative stress in the hypothalamus and the hippocampus; brain areas responsible for behavior related to food and anxiety, respectively. The results show that increased serotonin levels during a critical period of development do not induce significant differences in food-related behavior (intake and satiety), but do result in a in a significant decrease in anxiety. Measurements of oxidative stress showed a significant reduction of lipid peroxidation in the hippocampus (57%). In the hypothalamus, antioxidant enzymes were unchanged, but in the hippocampus, the activity of catalase and glutathione-S-transferase was increased (80% and 85% respectively). This suggests that protecting neural cells from oxidative stress during brain development contributes to the anxiolytic effects of serotonin.

Myocardial interstitial serotonin and its major metabolite, 5-hydroxyindole acetic acid levels determined by microdialysis technique in rat heart

“…Inhibition of 5-HT reuptake through fluoxetine-sensitive SERT may reduce the subsequent formation of 5-HIAA. It has been reported that fluoxetine has antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects (Abdel-Salam et al, 2004;da Silva et al, 2014). This effect of fluoxetine may be attributed to late increase of interstitial 5-HT levels and reduction of 5-HIAA formation, because 5-HT degradation to 5-HIAA by MAO generates hydrogen peroxide (Bianchi et al, 2005).…”

Fluoxetine induces lean phenotype in rat by increasing the brown/white adipose tissue ratio and UCP1 expression

“…To avoid a possible influence of the circadian rhythm in these studies, injections were always administered between 7:00 and 8:00 a.m. (Sanchez et al 2008;da Silva et al 2014).…”

“…Body weights (in grams) were measured from 1st to the 21st postnatal day (weaning) and again at 40 and 60 days after birth using a digital balance (Marte, model S-100 with a 0.001 g sensitivity) (Mendes-da- Silva et al 2002;da Silva et al 2014).…”

Serotonin modulation in neonatal age does not impair cardiovascular physiology in adult female rats: Hemodynamics and oxidative stress analysis

“…In order to avoid any possible influence of the circadian rhythm on the measurements, all Fx and vehicle injections were administered between 7:00 and 8:00 AM. All surgical procedures and experiments were performed with the approval of the Animal Care Committee of the Federal University of Pernambuco, Brazil, under the process number 23,076.026644/2010-20 [17][18][19].…”