Clonidine and prazosin block the iminodipropionitrile (IDPN)-induced spasmodic dyskinetic syndrome in mice.

The effects of drugs with selective action on alpha 1- or alpha 2-adrenoceptors were investigated on persistent head twitches, vertical neck dyskinesia, and the random circling behaviors induced by chronic intraperitoneal injections of IDPN. The alpha agonist clonidine and the alpha antagonist prazosin inhibited the IDPN-induced behavioral syndrome whereas the alpha antagonist yohimbine had no significant effect. These results suggest that dysregulation of a facilitatory noradrenergic input to cortical and/or subcortical motor areas may be involved in the abnormal movements caused by chronic treatment with IDPN.