LCEC monitoring of 5-hydroxyindolic compounds in the cerebrospinal fluid of the rat related to sleep and feeding.

A new technique which allows for both the chronic withdrawal of CSF and continuous recording of EEG sleep patterns and food intake in the freely moving rat is described. Liquid chromatography with electrochemical detection (LCEC) was used for the direct assay of tryptophan metabolites in the CSF. Both 5-hydroxyindolacetic acid (5-HIAA) and 5-hydroxytryptophan (5-HTP) were easily detectable. However, serotonin (5-HT) levels were relatively low and 5-hydroxytryptophol (5-HTPhol) and N-methylserotonin (N-Me-5HT) were undetectable in several cases. The continuous monitoring of 5-HIAA and 5-HTP indicated stable values throughout the 3-hr experiments during which no food or small meals were consumed. In the rat which consumed a large meal, both 5-HIAA and 5-HTP significantly increased following that meal. This increase in metabolites may be the result of an increased availability of tryptophan to the brain as a result of the meal. Although this study is preliminary, the described technique can provide further information about the possible relationship between behavioral (sleep and/or feeding) changes and the concomitant neurochemical fluctuations.