Centre for Studies in Behavioral Neurobiology, Department of Psychology, Concordia University, Montréal, QC, H4B 1R6, Canada.
Escuela de Psicología y Filosofía, Universidad de Tarapacá, 1010069, Arica, Arica y Parinacota, Chile.
Psychopharmacology (Berl). 2021 Mar;238(3):755-764. doi: 10.1007/s00213-020-05728-0. Epub 2020 Nov 26.
Sexual side effects of chronic treatment with selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) in humans include anorgasmia and loss of sexual desire and/or arousal which interferes with treatment compliance. There are few options at present to reduce these effects. Because orgasm and desire are mediated in part by activation of sympathetic arousal, we asked whether the sympathomimetic effects of acute caffeine treatment could reverse these effects.
The present study examined whether acute treatment with caffeine (CAF; 10 or 20 mg/kg, ip) versus vehicle could ameliorate the disruption of appetitive and consummatory measures of copulatory behavior produced by chronic fluoxetine (10 mg/kg, sc) in adult, sexually active female or male rats.
Sexually experienced female or male rats received daily injections of FLU over a 24-day period and were tested for sexual behaviors five times at 4-day intervals during this period in bilevel pacing chambers. Females had been ovariectomized and given hormone replacement with estradiol benzoate and progesterone prior to each test. Males were left gonadally intact. Four days after the final FLU test, rats were randomly assigned to one of the three doses of CAF and received ip injections of CAF or the saline vehicle 60 min before testing.
Chronic FLU reduced solicitations and lordosis over time in females and reduced the number of ejaculations in males. Both doses of CAF restored solicitations and lordosis in females and ejaculations in males. On their own, both doses of CAF increased females' pacing behavior and the number of mounts and intromissions in the males.
Stimulation of sympathetic outflow by CAF may constitute a readily accessible on-demand treatment for the sexual side-effects of SSRIs.
慢性使用选择性 5-羟色胺再摄取抑制剂（SSRIs）治疗会导致人类出现性副作用，包括性高潮障碍、性欲和/或性唤起缺失，从而影响治疗依从性。目前，减少这些副作用的选择方法有限。由于性高潮和性欲部分是通过激活交感神经兴奋来介导的，我们想知道急性咖啡因治疗的拟交感作用是否可以逆转这些作用。
本研究旨在探讨急性给予咖啡因（CAF；10 或 20mg/kg，ip）与载体相比是否可以改善慢性氟西汀（10mg/kg，sc）对成年、有性经验的雌性或雄性大鼠交配行为的欲望和完成测量的促进行为的破坏。
有性经验的雌性或雄性大鼠接受了 24 天的 FLU 每日注射，并在这段时间内每 4 天在双水平起搏室中进行 5 次性行为测试。雌性大鼠在每次测试前都进行了卵巢切除术，并给予苯甲酸雌二醇和孕酮进行激素替代。雄性大鼠保持性腺完整。在最后一次 FLU 测试后的第 4 天，大鼠被随机分配到 CAF 的三个剂量组之一，并在测试前 60 分钟接受 CAF 或生理盐水载体的 ip 注射。
慢性 FLU 随时间减少了雌性动物的求爱和背躬次数，并减少了雄性动物的射精次数。两种剂量的 CAF 都恢复了雌性动物的求爱和背躬次数，以及雄性动物的射精次数。CAF 的两种剂量单独作用时，都增加了雌性动物的踱步行为以及雄性动物的交配和插入次数。
CAF 刺激交感神经流出可能构成 SSRIs 性副作用的一种易于获得的按需治疗方法。
