Antinociception and behavioral changes induced by carbachol microinjected into identified sites of the rat brain.

The sites of the rat brain in which intracerebral administration of carbachol (0.4 microgram/0.5 microliter) elevates the nociceptive threshold to thermic (tail-flick test) and mechanical (calibrated-pinch test) noxious stimuli were examined. An extensive mapping (510 sites) ranging from AP + 10.5 to AP-0.1 mm revealed that antinociception was obtained from 119 sites (23%) widely scattered in the brain, and reached structures distant from, or within the immediate vicinity of the ventricular system. The effects from most placement were demonstrated using the tail-flick test, whereas a smaller proportion (approximately 13%) of sites was effective in reducing the response to mechanical stimuli only. Structures containing sensitive sites include the dorsal raphe nucleus, lateral border of the superior cerebellar peduncle, caudal portion of the superior colliculus, medial geniculate body, habenular complex, amygdala, temporal pole of the ventral hippocampus, rostral aspect of the dorsal hippocampus, lateral septal area, and triangular nucleus of the septum. Analysis of the distribution of responsive sites indicated that they are poorly superposed to the known distribution of opiate-sensitive areas. Most of the structures found to be responsive to carbachol are also known to possess cholinergic receptors and to evoke antinociception following focal electrical stimulation. In various placements, particularly in limbic structures, microinjection of carbachol evoked jumping to mechanical noxious stimulation, hyperexcitability to non-noxious stimuli, convulsive reactions, and other less frequent reactions. On few occasions, however, these changes were accompanied by antinociception.