• Biomolecules & Therapeutics
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• v.31 no.2
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• pp.176-182
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• 2023

Among 14 subtypes of serotonin receptors (5-HTRs), 5-HT_2AR plays important roles in drug addiction and various psychiatric disorders. Agonists for 5-HT_2AR have been classified into three structural groups: phenethylamines, tryptamines, and ergolines. In this study, the structure-activity relationship (SAR) of phenethylamine and tryptamine derivatives for binding 5-HT_2AR was determined. In addition, functional and regulatory evaluation of selected compounds was conducted for extracellular signal-regulated kinases (ERKs) and receptor endocytosis. SAR studies showed that phenethylamines possessed higher affinity to 5-HT_2AR than tryptamines. In phenethylamines, two phenyl groups were attached to the carbon and nitrogen (R³ ) atoms of ethylamine, the backbone of phenethylamines. Alkyl or halogen groups on the phenyl ring attached to the β carbon exerted positive effects on the binding affinity when they were at para positions. Oxygen-containing groups attached to R³ exerted mixed influences depending on the position of their attachment. In tryptamine derivatives, tryptamine group was attached to the β carbon of ethylamine, and ally groups were attached to the nitrogen atom. Oxygen-containing substituents on large ring and alkyl substituents on the small ring of tryptamine groups exerted positive and negative influence on the affinity for 5-HT_2AR, respectively. Ally groups attached to the nitrogen atom of ethylamine exerted negative influences. Functional and regulatory activities of the tested compounds correlated with their affinity for 5-HT_2AR, suggesting their agonistic nature. In conclusion, this study provides information for designing novel ligands for 5-HT_2AR, which can be used to control psychiatric disorders and drug abuse.

• Science of Emotion and Sensibility
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• v.14 no.3
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• pp.425-434
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• 2011

In the present study was to examine the influence of cold stress conditions on memory function in relation with 5-hydroxytryptamine(serotonin, 5-HT), trptophanhydroxylase(TPH) expression and cell proliferation in the hippocampus. For this study, male Sprague-Dawley rats weighing $250{\pm}10g$ (7 weeks in age) were used. The rats were randomly divided into three groups(n = 10 in each group): the $22^{\circ}C$-control group, the $4^{\circ}C$-3 days group, the $4^{\circ}C$-5 weeks group. The environmental temperature at $22^{\circ}C$ set as the normal conditions, $4^{\circ}C$ was as the cold stress conditions. The present results showed that cold stress conditions shorten latency, representing cold stress disturbed memory function. 5-HT and TPH expressions in the dorsal raphe were increased cold stress. Neurogenesis in the dentate gyrus was increased under cold conditions. The present study revealed that cold stress exerted deteriorative memory function. However, through increasing of 5-HT, TPH and BrdU expression under cold stress conditions did not show memory enhancing effect.

• The Korean Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology
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• v.21 no.6
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• pp.617-623
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• 2017

The vascular actions and mechanisms of taurine were investigated in the isolated human radial artery (RA). RA rings were suspended in isolated organ baths and tension was recorded isometrically. First, a precontraction was achieved by adding potassium chloride (KCl, 45 mM) or serotonin (5-hydroxytryptamine, 5-HT, $30{\mu}M$) to organ baths. When the precontractions were stable, taurine (20, 40, 80 mM) was added cumulatively. Antagonistic effect of taurine on calcium chloride ($10{\mu}M$ to 10 mM) -induced contractions was investigated. Taurine-induced relaxations were also tested in the presence of the $K^+$ channel inhibitors tetraethylammonium (1 mM), glibenclamide ($10{\mu}M$) and 4-aminopyridine (1 mM). Taurine did not affect the basal tone but inhibited the contraction induced by 5-HT and KCl. Calcium chloride-induced contractions were significantly inhibited in the presence of taurine (20, 40, 80 mM) (p<0.05). The relaxation to taurine was inhibited by tetraethylammonium (p<0.05). However, glibenclamide and 4-aminopyridine did not affect taurine -induced relaxations. Present experiments show that taurine inhibits 5-HT and KCl -induced contractions in RA, and suggest that large conductance $Ca^{2+}$-activated $K^+$ channels may be involved in taurine -induced relaxation of RA.

• The Korean Journal of Pain
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• v.32 no.1
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• pp.3-11
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• 2019

Going back to basics prior to mentioning the use of antipsychotics in patients with pain, the International Association for the Study of Pain (IASP) definition of pain can be summarized as an unpleasant experience, composed of sensory experience caused by actual tissue damage and/or emotional experience caused by potential tissue damage. Less used than antidepressants, antipsychotics have also been used for treating this unpleasant experience as adjuvant analgesics without sufficient evidence from research. Because recently developed atypical antipsychotics reduce the adverse reactions of extrapyramidal symptoms, such as acute dystonia, pseudo-parkinsonism, akathisia, and tardive dyskinesia caused by typical antipsychotics, they are expected to be used more frequently in various painful conditions, while increasing the risk of metabolic syndromes (weight gain, diabetes, and dyslipidemia). Various antipsychotics have different neurotransmitter receptor affinities for dopamine (D), 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT), adrenergic (${\alpha}$), histamine (H), and muscarinic (M) receptors. Atypical antipsychotics antagonize transient, weak $D_2$ receptor bindings with strong binding to the $5-HT_{2A}$ receptor, while typical antipsychotics block long-lasting, tight $D_2$ receptor binding. On the contrary, antidepressants in the field of pain management also block the reuptake of similar receptors, mainly on the 5-HT and, next, on the norepinephrine, but rarely on the D receptors. Antipsychotics have been used for treating positive symptoms, such as delusion, hallucination, disorganized thought and behavior, perception disturbance, and inappropriate emotion, rather than the negative, cognitive, and affective symptoms of psychosis. Therefore, an antipsychotic may be prescribed in pain patients with positive symptoms of psychosis during or after controlling all sensory components.

• The Journal of Korean Physical Therapy
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• v.21 no.2
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• pp.109-116
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• 2009

Purpose: $17\beta$-estradiol is the most active endogenous estrogen, which is related to favorable changes in the plasma lipid profile, to relaxation of the coronary vessels, and to a decrease in platelet aggregation and vascular smooth muscle cell migration. However, although the beneficial effect of estrogens on plasma lipoproteins (ie, lowering low-density lipoprotein and increasing high-density lipoprotein cholesterol) contributes to cardiovascular protection, it does not fully account for the protective effect, particularly in the application of physical therapy, including low frequency electrical stimulation. Methods: The aim of this study was to demonstrate the inhibition of stressors, such as endothelin-1 (ET-1), serotonin (5-hydroxytryptamine, 5-HT), prostaglandin $F2\alpha$ ($PGF2\alpha$), and a protein kinase C (PKC) activator 12-deoxyphorbol 13-isobutyrate (DPB), induced isometric tension by $17\beta$-estradiol in vascular smooth muscle strips, respectively. In addition, the effects of low frequency electrical stimulation at the meridian points (CV-3, -4, Ki-12, SP-6, LR-3, BL-25, -28, -32, -52) on the indirect antihypertensive effect were examined by monitoring the changes in the serum $17\beta$-estradiol concentration in healthy volunteers. Results: Isometric tension analysis showed that the responses of inhibited tension by $17\beta$-estradiol were similar to the same stressors in rat aortic smooth muscle strips. Furthermore, although the continued amplitude modulation (AM) type of electrical stimulation was not increased significantly by electrical stimulation, the current of the frequency modulation (FM) type of low frequency electrical stimulation increased the serum $17\beta$-estradiol concentration in normal volunteers. Conclusion: These results, in part, suggest that $17\beta$-estradiol has the capacity to supress stressor-induced muscle tension, and electrical stimulation, particularly current of the FM type, has a modulatory effect on the sex steroid hormones, particularly $17\beta$-estradiol, in healthy volunteers.

• Molecules and Cells
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• v.25 no.2
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• pp.178-183
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• 2008

To investigate the effects of electro-acupuncture (EA) treatment on regions remote from the application, we measured cellular, enzymatic, and transcriptional activities in various internal tissues of healthy rats. The EA was applied to the well-identified acupoint ST36 of the leg. After application, we measured the activity of natural killer cells in the spleen, gene expression in the hypothalamus, and the activities of antioxidative enzymes in the hypothalamus, liver and red blood cells. The EA treatment increased natural killer cell activity in the spleen by approximately 44%. It also induced genes related to pain, including 5-Hydroxytryptamine (serotonin) receptor 3a (Htr3a) and Endothelin receptor type B (Ednrb) in the hypothalamus, and increased the activity of superoxide dismutase in the hypothalamus, liver, and red blood cells. These findings indicate that EA mediates its effects through changes in cellular activity, gene expression, and enzymatic activity in multiple remote tissues. The sum of these alterations may explain the beneficial effects of EA.

• Korean Journal of Clinical Laboratory Science
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• v.49 no.3
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• pp.220-226
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• 2017

Dopamine (DA) and serotonin (5-Hydroxytryptamine, 5-HT) are neurotransmitters and hormones that exist in small amounts but have important role in the body. Serum and 24-hour urine are used as specimens, and are usually examined by HPLC-MS. In this study, we tried to detect DA and 5-HT by competitive ELISA using antigen-antibody (Ab) reaction. After immobilizing $5{\mu}g/mL$ BSA conjugate on a 96-well surface, hormone and primary Ab, which are respectively diluted to different concentrations, were treated. Then, HRP-conjugated secondary Ab and TMB were added to measure absorbance. The regression equation and $R^2$ value were calculated based on absorbance, and sensitivity of Ab to hormone as well as the correlation between hormone concentration and absorbance were determined. In DA ELISA, $R^2$, the correlation between the concentration of hormone and absorbance, was the highest by 0.91 when anti-dopamine Ab was diluted 6,000 times and 7,000 times. In 5-HT ELISA, $R^2$ was bigger than 0.90 in every concentration except 3,000 times and 6,000 times. Both DA and 5-HT were not effectively detected at low concentrations (less than $1.0{\times}10^{-7}M$); and because reference value of serum DA is lower than this, HPLC-MS was required to detect serum DA. However, competitive ELISA may be effective in detecting 24-hour urine DA, serum, and 24-hour 5-HT. Further studies are needed to detect hormones more accurately at lower concentrations.

• The Korean Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology
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• v.20 no.6
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• pp.605-611
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• 2016

Ketamine is an anesthetic with hypertensive effects, which make it useful for patients at risk of shock. However, previous ex vivo studies reported vasodilatory actions of ketamine in isolated arteries. In this study, we reexamined the effects of ketamine on arterial tones in the presence and absence of physiological concentrations of 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT) and norepinephrine (NE) by measuring the isometric tension of endothelium-denuded rat mesenteric arterial rings. Ketamine little affected the resting tone of control mesenteric arterial rings, but, in the presence of 5-HT (100~200 nM), ketamine ($10{\sim}100{\mu}M$) markedly contracted the arterial rings. Ketamine did not contract arterial rings in the presence of NE (10 nM), indicating that the vasoconstrictive action of ketamine is 5-HT-dependent. The concentration-response curves (CRCs) of 5-HT were clearly shifted to the left in the presence of ketamine ($30{\mu}M$), whereas the CRCs of NE were little affected by ketamine. The left shift of the 5-HT CRCs caused by ketamine was reversed with ketanserin, a competitive 5-$HT_{2A}$ receptor inhibitor, indicating that ketamine facilitated the activation of 5-$HT_{2A}$ receptors. Anpirtoline and BW723C86, selective agonists of 5-$HT_{1B}$ and 5-$HT_{2B}$ receptors, respectively, did not contract arterial rings in the absence or presence of ketamine. These results indicate that ketamine specifically enhances 5-$HT_{2A}$ receptor-mediated vasoconstriction and that it is vasoconstrictive in a clinical setting. The facilitative action of ketamine on 5-$HT_{2A}$ receptors should be considered in ketamine-induced hypertension as well as in the pathogenesis of diseases such as schizophrenia, wherein experimental animal models are frequently generated using ketamine.

• The Korean Journal of Pharmacology
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• v.25 no.1
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• pp.1-11
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• 1989

In this study, it was aimed to investigate the role of serotonergic neurotransmission in nucleus tractus solitarius (NTS) for the central regulation of blood pressure and heart rate and its involvement in baroreceptor reflex activation in rats. A microinjection of 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT) into the NTS produced decreases in blood pressure and heart rate. Maximal decreases were $34.4{\pm}1.6$ mmHg and $41.7{\pm}10.2$ beats per min by 300 pmol of 5-HT. Microinjections of ${\alpha}-methylnor-adrenaline$ $({\alpha}-MNE)$ and clonidine manifested similar decreases in blood pressure and heart rate. The hypotensive and bradycardial effects of 5-HT were blocked by previous applications of 5-HT antagonists, ritanserin, methysergide and ketanserin into the NTS, respectively. By pretreatment with reserpine and 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA, i.c.v.), both hypotensive and bradycardial effects of 5-HT were significantly attenuated. Pretreatment with 5, 7-dihydroxytryptamine (5,7-DHT, i.c.v.) enhanced the hypotensive and bradycardial effects of 5-HT. Similarly, following pretreatment with 6-OHDA, the effects of clonidine were increased. Pretreatment either with 5,7-DHT or 6-OHDA significantly attenuated the sensitivity of baroreflex produced either by phenylephrine or by sodium nitroprusside. When either 5,7-DHT or 6-OHDA was injected into the NTS $(5,7-DHT;\;8{\mu}g\;6-OHDA;\;10{\mu}g)$, both of the baroreflex sensitivities were impaired. In the immunohistochemical study, the injection of 6-OHDA into the the NTS led to reduction of axon terminal varicosity, however, the injection did not reduce the numbers of catecholaminergic cell bodies. Likewise, when 5,7-DHT was injected into the NTS, the varicosity of serotonergic axon terminals was markedly reduced. Based on these results, it is suggested that (1) stimulation of serotonergic receptors in the NTS leads to decreases in blood pressure and heart rate as observed with the stimulation of catecholaminergic system, (2) both serotonergic and catecholaminergic receptors may be located postsynaptically, and (3) the serotonergic neurons as well as catecholaminergic neurons may have a close relevance for the activation of baroreflex.

• Archives of Pharmacal Research
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• v.27 no.10
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• pp.1065-1072
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• 2004

Depression is associated with a dysfunctional serotonin (5-hydroxytryptamine; 5-HT) system. More recently, several lines of evidence suggest that an important factor in the development of depression may be a deficit in the function and expression of $5-HT_{1A}$ receptors. The present study assessed if Nelumbinis Semen (N. s.) had an anti-depression effect through reversing a decrease in $5-HT_{1A}$receptor binding in rats with depression-like symptoms induced by chronic mild stress. Using a $5-HT_{1A}$ receptor binding assay, with a specific $5-HT_{1A}$receptor agonist, 8- OH-DPAT (8-hydroxy-2-(di-n-propylamino) tetralin), the mechanism of the anti-depression effect of N. s. on rats was investigated, and the effects compared with two well-known antidepressants, Hyperium Perforatum (St. Johns Wort) and fluoxetine (Prozac). Animals were divided into five groups: the normal (N) group without chronic mild stress (CMS), the control (C) group under CMS for 8 weeks, the Nelumbinis Semen (N. s.) treatment group under CMS for 8 weeks, the Hyperium Perforatum (H. p.) treatment group under CMS for 8 weeks and finally, the fluoxetine (F) treatment group under CMS for 8 weeks. Each treatment was administered to rats during the last 4 weeks of the 8-week CMS. A sucrose intake test was performed to test the anti-depression effect of N. s. The N. s. treatment significantly reversed the decreased sucrose intake under CMS (P<0.05 compared to control group under CMS). In the CA2 and CA3 regions of the hippocampus, both N. s. and H. p. reversed the CMS-induced decrease in $5-HT_{1A}$receptor binding. In the I to II regions of the frontal cortex, N. s. and H. p. also reversed the CMS-induced decrease in$5-HT_{1A}$receptor binding, and even showed a significant increase in $5-HT_{1A}$receptor binding compared to the F treatment group (N. s. vs. P, p<0.05, H. p. vs. P, p<0.05). However, in the hypothalamus, all treatments reversed the CMSinduced decrease in $5-HT_{1A}$receptor binding. This reversal effect of N. s. on the decrease in $5-HT_{1A}$receptor binding in the frontal cortex, hippocampus and hypothalamus of rat brains was very similar to that of H. p, but different from that of F. It is concluded that N. s. presents an anti-depression effect through enhancing $5-HT_{1A}$receptor binding.