Reduction in brain serotonin synthesis rate following chronic methamphetamine administration in rats.

Chronic administration of methamphetamine (20 mg/kg i.p., every 12 h for 6 days) produced significant decreased in brain 5-hydroxytryptophan accumulation following decarboxylase inhibition and 5-hydroxyindoleacetic acid accumulation following probenecid treatment in rats. Administration of fluoxetine prior to each methamphetamine injection prevented these neurochemical changes. Acute methamphetamine treatment produced no changes in these neurochemical measures. These data demonstrate that chronic, but not acute, methamphetamine treatment reduces brain serotonin synthesis rate.