Diminished alpha 2-adrenoceptor-mediated modulation of noradrenergic neurotransmission in the posterior hypothalamus of spontaneously hypertensive rats.

An azepine derivative, 6-allyl-2-amino-5,6,7,8-tetrahydro-4H-thiazolo-[4,5-d]-azepine (B-HT 920; 100 nM), inhibited the evoked noradrenaline release from slices of rat posterior hypothalamus, and yohimbine (100 nM) potentiated the release from slices of rat anterior and posterior hypothalamus. In the posterior hypothalamus of 4- and 15-16-week-old spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHRs), as compared with age-matched Wistar-Kyoto rats (WKYs), the inhibitory effect of B-HT 920 and the facilitatory effect of yohimbine were decreased. In the anterior hypothalamus there was no significant difference in the yohimbine effect between WKYs and SHRs, at either age. It is concluded that alpha 2-adrenoceptor-mediated autoinhibition of noradrenergic neurotransmission is diminished in the posterior hypothalamus of SHRs.