Functional recovery after destruction of dopamine systems in the nucleus accumbens of rats. II. Facilitation by the ACTH-(4-9) analog ORG 2766.

Functional recovery from motor hypoactivity of rats with 6-OHDA lesions in the nucleus accumbens is accelerated by intra-accumbal or subcutaneous treatment with the ACTH-(4-9) analog ORG 2766. The spontaneous recovery period of 3 weeks is shortened to 7 days by daily treatment with this peptide during the first 6 days after the lesion. The 6-OHDA lesion induced a decrease of about 30-40% in the levels of dopamine, HVA and DOPAC as well as in the uptake of [3H]dopamine in nucleus accumbens tissue in vitro. Treatment with ORG 2766 during the first 6 days following the lesion did not affect the lesion-induced changes in these biochemical parameters. Binding studies with [3H]haloperidol in nucleus accumbens tissue of placebo or ORG 2766-treated sham-lesioned rats revealed a linear Scatchard plot 7 days after the sham lesion. In tissue of placebo-treated 6-OHDA lesioned animals a similar linear Scatchard plot was found but in tissue of ORG 2766-treated 6-OHDA-lesioned rats the Scatchard plot was curvilinear in shape indicating two types of binding sites. In the 6-OHDA-lesioned rats treated with ORG 2766 the behavioral response upon apomorphine challenge was enhanced suggesting the existence of functional supersensitivity of the DA system. Similar changes in Scatchard plots and apomorphine-induced behavioral changes have been previously reported after spontaneous recovery. The present study indicates that ORG 2766 accelerates the process of functional recovery from impaired motor behavior of rats with 6-OHDA lesions in the nucleus accumbens, which may be due to development of denervation supersensitivity.