Anticonflict effects of acute and chronic treatments with buspirone and gepirone in rats.

The anticonflict activities of buspirone and gepirone were examined in the Vogel's water licking test in rats. Acute treatment with buspirone induced a significant increase in water licking response, but gepirone showed slightly more marked effect than buspirone. The anticonflict activities of these compounds were potentiated by chronic administration. Especially, gepirone exhibited a dramatically remarkable anticonflict effect. These results suggest that gepirone has a great possibility of promising drug for anxiety.