de Rotte A A, van Egmond M A, van Wimersma Greidanus T B
Physiol Behav. 1982 May;28(5):765-8. doi: 10.1016/0031-9384(82)90191-3.
It was shown previously that alpha-MSH levels in peripheral blood of rats subjected to passive avoidance training did not correlate with the behavioral performance of the animals. We have investigated whether alpha-MSH levels in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) change during passive avoidance behavior. It appeared that throughout adaptation, acquisition and retention of this avoidance behavior, alpha-MSH levels in the CSF did not change significantly. In an additional experiment in which the effects of an electric footshock versus a psychological stimulus were tested, alpha-MSH levels in CSF also remained unchanged. Since CSF alpha-MSH levels appear to be relatively stable under these behavioral conditions, it seems unlikely that the CSF functions as a direct and specific route for the afferent transport of the behaviorally active neuropeptide alpha-MSH to its sites of action in the brain. However, the psychological stimulus, which consisted of the fear of receiving an unavoidable electric footshock, did induce a significant enhancement of alpha-MSH levels in peripheral blood, suggesting that psychological stress may be involved in the release of alpha-MSH into the peripheral circulation. These results support the idea of a differentiated system of secretion of alpha-MSH into CSF and peripheral blood.
先前的研究表明，接受被动回避训练的大鼠外周血中α-促黑素（α-MSH）水平与动物的行为表现并无关联。我们研究了在被动回避行为过程中脑脊液（CSF）中的α-MSH水平是否会发生变化。结果显示，在这种回避行为的整个适应、习得和保持过程中，脑脊液中的α-MSH水平并无显著变化。在另一项测试电足电击与心理刺激效果的实验中，脑脊液中的α-MSH水平同样保持不变。由于在这些行为条件下脑脊液中的α-MSH水平似乎相对稳定，脑脊液似乎不太可能作为行为活性神经肽α-MSH向其在大脑中作用位点进行传入运输的直接且特定途径。然而，由对不可避免的电足电击的恐惧构成的心理刺激确实导致外周血中α-MSH水平显著升高，这表明心理应激可能参与了α-MSH释放到外周循环的过程。这些结果支持了α-MSH分泌到脑脊液和外周血中的差异化系统这一观点。
