Bombesin-induced hypothermia: a dose-response and receptor antagonist study

Bombesin infusion into the preoptic area (POA) has previously been shown to induce hypothermia in rats that are food deprived or made hypoglycemic with insulin. The present study evaluated the potency and receptor specificity of this response. Bombesin was microinfused into the POA of food-deprived rats (n = 7) and insulin-pretreated rats (n = 7) at doses of 0, 5, 12, 25, and 50 ng/0.5 microliters. Changes in core body temperature (rectal) were assessed at 1 h. Hypothermia was observed under both conditions with doses as low as 5 ng (3.1 pM) as compared to vehicle (0 ng). In a separate study, infusion of the reduced peptide bond analog (Psi13,14 Leu14)bombesin (2.5 micrograms) prior to bombesin injection (25 ng) was found to prevent the hypothermic response observed in the bombesin control condition. These data suggest that bombesin is a potent hypothermic agent that interacts with gastrin-releasing peptide receptors localized within the POA region to impact thermoregulation.