The effects of peripheral serotonin2 receptor agonist on food intake of rats.

Abstract

It has been reported that the serotonin2 (5-HT2) receptor is involved in several physiological effects of 5-HT such as platelet aggregation and hypertension (Fozard, 1989). It has been suggested that 5-HT participates in the regulation of food intake and that activation of the serotonergic system decreases food intake in rats (Blundell, 1984; Curzon, 1990). It has been reported that the central 5-HT2A/2C receptor agonist DOI or 5-HT2C receptor agonist mCPP induces a decrease in food intake in rats and that these receptors may be mediated by the central effects of 5-HT on food intake (Aulakh et al., 1992; Schechter and Simansky, 1988; Kennet and Curzon, 1991). However, the involvement of the peripheral 5-HT2 receptor in food intake is not well established and the effects of the peripheral 5-HT2 receptor agonist is not yet clear. Therefore, in this study, we investigated the effects of the peripheral 5-HT2 receptor agonist α-methyl-5-HT on the food intake of rats.