Defective 5-HT 1-receptor-mediated neurotransmission in the control of growth hormone secretion in Parkinson's disease.

Abstract

In order to gain a better insight in the serotonergic disorder affecting the parkinsonian brain, the growth hormone (GH) response to the 5-HT 1 serotonergic receptor agonist sumatriptan was tested. Sumatriptan was injected subcutaneously in 10 de novo parkinsonian patients (aged 58-69 years) and in 9 age-matched normal controls. On different occasions, subjects were also tested with GH-releasing hormone (GH-RH; 1 micrograms/kg body weight in an intravenous bolus) and L-arginine (30 g in 50 ml normal saline over 30 min), which releases GH from somatostatin inhibition, to determine whether GH secretion in response to alternate secretagogues is preserved in Parkinson's disease. In addition, a control test with the administration of normal saline instead of drug treatments was performed. Plasma GH levels were recorded over 2 h in all tests. Placebo administration did not change plasma GH levels in any subject. Similar GH responses were observed in normal controls and parkinsonian patients when GH-RH or arginine were administered. A significant GH increase was observed in normal controls after sumatriptan injection; in contrast, GH secretion was not modified by sumatriptan administration in parkinsonian patients. These data show that Parkinson's disease is associated with an impairment in the 5-HT1-receptor-mediated serotonergic transmission in the control of GH secretion, suggesting that this specific defect might alter other serotonergic-mediated mechanisms in the parkinsonian brain.