Altered responses to serotonergic agents in Fawn-Hooded rats

The incidence of "wet dog" shakes elicited by quipazine, the hyperthermic response induced by 5-methoxy-N,N-dimethyltryptamine (5MeODMT) and the hypothermic response to 8-hydroxy-2-(di-n-propylamino) tetralin (8-OH-DPAT) were compared in rats of the Fawn-Hooded (FH) and Sprague-Dawley (SD) strains. The behavioral responses of FH rats to quipazine and 5MeODMT were significantly greater than those of SD rats. On the other hand, the hypothermic effect of 8-OH-DPAT in FH rats was significantly less than that elicited in SD animals. The present results are supportive of the view that the responsiveness of serotonergic mechanisms in the CNS of FH rats differs markedly from those in SD animals.