Effect of central catecholamine alterations on the hypothermic response to 6-hydroxydopamine in desipramine treated rats.

The hypothermia observed in rats kept in a cold environment after the intracisternal administration of 6-hydroxydopamine was enhanced by desipramine. Since pretreatment with 6-hydroxydopamine virtually eliminated the temperature fall in response to a subsequent dose of 6-hydroxydopamine, brain catecholamines were implicated in the response. Preferential reduction of brain noradrenaline antagonized the hypothermia after 6-hydroxydopamine in desipramine-treated rats to a greater extent than did the preferential reduction of dopamine. The results indicate the importance of noradrenergic fibres in this hypothermic response, but do not exclude an involvement of brain dopaminergic pathways.