Strain differences in the magnitude of swimming-induced analgesia in mice correlate with brain opiate receptor concentration.

Swimming-induced analgesia was studied in 4 strains of mice differing in central opiate receptor density: C57BL/6By (C57), BALB/cBy (BALB/c), CXBK and CXBH. The degree of 'swim analgesia' significantly differed among strains in the order CXBH greater than BALB/c = C57 greater than CXBK. This order positively correlates with known differences in opiate receptor density in these strains. Naloxone reversed the analgesic effect of swimming in CXBH, C57 and BALB/c, but was ineffective in opiate receptor-deficient CXBK mice. These results suggest that genetic differences in central opiate receptor density influence the analgesic response to stressful stimuli.