Abstract
The behavioural effects induced by α-, γ1- and γ2-MSH peptides (0.3 and 3 nmole per rat) injected into the left ventral tegmental area (VTA) of rats were compared. α- and γ1-MSH caused grooming of comparable magnitude, and also additional vertical activity (rearing). By contrast γ2-MSH caused a moderate but stable catalepsy, and practically no grooming. Moreover, intra-VTA pre-treatment with γ2-MSH, 15 min prior to intra-VTA γ1-MSH, markedly attenuated both the γ1-induced grooming and vertical activities. The differences in the behavioural response of the MSH peptides indicate that they act differentially on MC receptors in the VTA.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 99-104 |
| Number of pages | 6 |
| Journal | Acta Physiologica Scandinavica |
| Volume | 167 |
| Issue number | 2 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - 1999 |
| Externally published | Yes |
Keywords*
- Behavioural effect
- MSH
- Ventral tegmental area
Field of Science*
- 1.6 Biological sciences
- 3.1 Basic medicine
Publication Type*
- 1.1. Scientific article indexed in Web of Science and/or Scopus database