Neurotransmitter Impairments in the Brain Induced by Acute Combined Intoxication of Rats with Ethanol and Morphine

Abstract—

The levels of biogenic monoamines and their metabolites have been investigated in the hypothalamus, midbrain, and cerebellum of rats exposed to acute combined intoxication with morphine and ethanol. A single treatment of rats with ethanol and morphine caused neurotransmitter impairments in particular parts of the brain; they depended on the order of morphine and ethanol administration. The combined intoxication with ethanol and morphine led to signs of dopamine utilization only in the hypothalamus, regardless of the order of administration of psychoactive substances (PAS). During alcohol-morphine intoxication in the studied parts of the brain there was an increase in the level of metabolites of the serotonergic system. The combined action of the two surfactants largely corresponded to the effect of the last introduced substance in the midbrain and cerebellum. The combined administration of these PAS had a significant impact on parameters of the dopaminergic and serotonergic systems manifested by the processes of dopamine catabolism and a decrease in the norepinephrine and serotonin concentrations in the hypothalamus and these changes were not observed after ethanol or morphine administration alone.