Nicotine potentiates haloperidol-induced catalepsy and locomotor hypoactivity.

Nicotine was found to potentiate the catalepsy and reduced locomotion following the administration of haloperidol. The ability of various doses of nicotine (0.1, 0.2, or 0.3 mg/kg) to potentiate the catalepsy produced by haloperidol (0.1, 0.2 or 0.4 mg/kg) was investigated. Nicotine potentiated the cataleptic effects of both the 0.2 and 0.4 mg/kg doses of haloperidol, but had no effect following the lowest (0.1 mg/kg) dose of haloperidol. The nicotine potentiation of catalepsy produced by the highest dose of haloperidol was independent of the dose of nicotine used. Nicotine alone did not produce catalepsy. A second experiment evaluated the ability of nicotine to potentiate the decreases in spontaneous locomotor activity produced by haloperidol. Animals received nicotine (0.1 mg/kg) alone or in conjunction with haloperidol (0.1 or 0.4 mg/kg) and were tested in Digiscan Animal Monitors. Haloperidol produced a dose-related decrease in locomotion. Nicotine significantly potentiated the hypoactivity produced by both doses of haloperidol. These results indicated that: 1) nicotine produces a significant potentiation of both the catalepsy and locomotor decreases following haloperidol and 2) the Digiscam Animal Activity Monitors may provide a more sensitive assessment of the interaction between nicotine and haloperidol than the catalepsy bat test. These data suggest that adjunct treatment with nicotine may prove useful for treating neuroleptic responsive disorders such as Tourette Syndrome, schizophrenia and Huntington's disease.