Effects of drugs and axotomy on acetylcholine levels in central cholinergic neurons.

Administration of cholinergic nuscarinic agonists either did not alter, or increased hippocampal Ach levels, while antagonists lowered the levels. As observed previously, placement of lesions in the medial septal area resulted in a rise in hippocampal Ach levels in the first thirty minutes. Agonist drugs administered immediately before lesion, further increased the post-lesion rise in Ach levels. With antagonists, inconsistent results were obtained in that atropine blocked the post-lesion rise, while scopolamine and quinuclidinyl benzilate (QNB) potentiated the post-lesion rise. These results suggest that there may be receptor-mediated effects on Ach synthesis or release after axotomy.