EFFECTS OF THE CHRONIC TREATMENT WITH L-3,4-DIHYDROXYPHENYLALANINE (L-DOPA) ON THE NEUROENDOCRINE STRESS RESPONSE

ORILLO JORDI SANTIAGO; IMSEN MERCEDES; LIZARRAGA ALFONSINA; ROMERO ANA CLARA; DE FINO FERNANDA; PEÑA MILAGROS; ÁLVAREZ SILVIA; ZARATE SANDRA; FERRARIS JIMENA; DIAZ TORGA GRACIELA; PISERA DANIEL

Mar del Plata

Congreso; 64 Meeting of the Argentine Society of Clinical Research; 2019

Stress evokes a complex response mediated by two systems: the HypothalamusPituitary-Adrenal (HPA) axis and the Sympathetic-Adreno-Medullar (SAM) axis.Glucocorticoids and catecholamines secreted from the adrenal glands andsympathetic nerves are the main hormone effectors of the physiological adaptationsobserved during stress. Moreover, prolactin (PRL) is another pituitary hormonesecreted under stressful stimuli. Catecholamines are synthesized from thehydroxylated precursor L-Dopa. This agent is also used with therapeutic purposes,e.g. in Parkinson?s disease. In the present research, we studied the effects of LDopa on the response to a stressor. Adult male Wistar rats (300 g) were chronicallytreated (24 days) with LEBOCAR (L-Dopa (75 mg/day) - Carbidopa (7.5 mg/day))orally in drinking water and stressed by immobilization during the last 9 days oftreatment. We first explored the activity of the SAM axis. Circulating noradrenalineincreased in rats treated with LEBOCAR (p