Atropine sulfate increases pituitary responses to stress

The effects of atropine sulfate pretreatment on pituitary indices of stress response were examined. Pituitary cyclic AMP and plasma prolactin increases following 15 min of acute stress were used as measures of stress response. Over a range of doses (0, 5, 10, 30 and 60 mg/kg), pretreatment with atropine sulfate increased the measured stress responses to footshock but had little or no effect on resting or non-stressed levels of the substances measured. The effects of atropine on response to immobilization were tested only at 5 mg/kg. At this dose, atropine sulfate, but not methylatropine nitrate, increased pituitary cyclic AMP response to immobilization stress demonstrating that the potentiation of the pituitary cyclic AMP stress response was not limited to footshock stress and suggesting that this effect of atropine was central rather than peripheral. Neither atropine nor methylatropine pretreatment at this dose potentiated prolactin response to immobilization stress.