Analgesic effects of serotonin and receptor-selective serotonin agonists in the rat spinal cord

1. Serotonin (5-HT) and selective 5-HT receptor agonists were administered intrathecally (i.t.) in rats, and the antinociceptive efficacy of these agents was assessed on the tail-flick and hot plate tests. 2. The 5-HT receptor agonists examined in this study included the 5-HT1A agonist 8-hydroxy-N,N-dipropyl-2-aminotetralin (8-OH-DPAT), the 5-HT1B agonist m-trifluoromethylphenylpiperazine (TFMPP), the 5-HT2 agonist 1-(2,5-dimethoxy-4-iodophenyl)-2-aminopropane (DOI) and the 5-HT3 agonist phenylbiguanide (PBG). 3. None of these agents produced significant elevations in tail-flick latency (TFL) at doses which produced elevations in hot plate latency (HPL). 4. In contrast, the i.t. dose of 5-HT which elevated TFL also produced analgesia on the hot plate test. 5. Serotonin-induced elevations in TFL were reversed by pindolol, ritanserin and ICS 205-930, suggesting that 5-HT interacts with more than one 5-HT site in the spinal cord to produce analgesia on the tail-flick test. 6. The finding that ritanserin reversed 5-HT-induced elevations in HPL suggests that the 5-HT2 site is primarily responsible for mediating the spinal antinociceptive effects of 5-HT on the hot plate test.