Gogos Andrea, Nathan Pradeep J, Guille Valérie, Croft Rodney J, van den Buuse Maarten
Behavioural Neuroscience Laboratory, Mental Health Research Institute of Victoria, Parkville, VIC, Australia.
Neuropsychopharmacology. 2006 Apr;31(4):885-9. doi: 10.1038/sj.npp.1300933.
The sex steroid hormone, estrogen, has been proposed to be protective against schizophrenia. This study examined the effects of estrogen treatment on modulation of prepulse inhibition (PPI) by the serotonin-1A (5-HT1A) receptor partial agonist, buspirone. PPI is a model of sensorimotor gating, which is deficient in schizophrenia and other mental illnesses. A total of 11 healthy women were tested following four acute treatment conditions: placebo, buspirone (Buspar; 5 mg), estradiol (Estrofem; 2 mg), and combined buspirone and estradiol. Electromyogram activity was measured across three interstimulus intervals (ISI): 30, 60, and 120 ms. There was no significant effect of either drug treatment on startle amplitude or habituation. At 120 ms ISI, buspirone caused a significant disruption of PPI and pretreatment with estrogen prevented this disruption. Estrogen treatment, administered in the appropriate experimental conditions, prevented PPI deficits induced by 5-HT(1A) receptor activation and may therefore also play a protective role in sensorimotor gating deficits in schizophrenia.
性类固醇激素雌激素被认为对精神分裂症具有保护作用。本研究考察了雌激素治疗对血清素-1A（5-HT1A）受体部分激动剂丁螺环酮调节前脉冲抑制（PPI）的影响。PPI是一种感觉运动门控模型，在精神分裂症和其他精神疾病中存在缺陷。共有11名健康女性在以下四种急性治疗条件下接受测试：安慰剂、丁螺环酮（布斯帕；5毫克）、雌二醇（爱斯妥；2毫克）以及丁螺环酮与雌二醇联合使用。在三个刺激间隔（ISI）下测量肌电图活动：30、60和120毫秒。两种药物治疗对惊吓幅度或习惯化均无显著影响。在ISI为120毫秒时，丁螺环酮导致PPI显著破坏，而雌激素预处理可防止这种破坏。在适当的实验条件下给予雌激素治疗，可防止由5-HT（1A）受体激活引起的PPI缺陷，因此也可能在精神分裂症的感觉运动门控缺陷中发挥保护作用。
