CENTRAL SOMATOSTATIN INHIBITS CHOLECYSTOKININ-INDUCED OXYTOCIN SECRETION IN CONSCIOUS RATS

Recent studies have demonstrated the presence of fibres immunoreactive for somatostatin-28 (SS-28), which originate in the brainstem and selectively innervate the magnocellular oxytocin (OT) cells of the supraoptic nucleus. The potential physiological relevance of this pathway was investigated in the present study by measuring plasma OT levels in response to intraperitoneal administration of cholecystokinin in conscious male rats pretreated with intracerebroventricular injections of either SS-28 or artificial cerebrospinal fluid. Cholecystokinin treatment produced the expected marked rise in plasma OT levels in control rats pretreated intracerebroventricularly with artificial cerebrospinal fluid. However, this response was markedly blunted by prior intracerebroventricular administration of SS-28, even though SS-28 itself had no effect on basal plasma OT levels, nor did it impair OT release in response to hypertonic saline injection. These results demonstrate that centrally injected SS-28 can selectively block cholecystokinin-stimulated release of OT in rats, and support an inhibitory role for this peptide in brainstem-mediated neurohypophysial hormone secretion. Central SS-28 administration also elicited up to 3-fold increases in the amount of food ingested in 1 h by previously sated rats. These observations suggest the possibility that endogenous SS-28 may be involved in stimulating food intake in rats, and establish the basis for future studies to clarify the role of this neuropeptide in controlling ingestive behaviours.