Effects of 5-HT1A receptor agonists, partial agonists and a silent antagonist on the performance of the conditioned emotional response test in the rat

In the present study, the effects of 5-HT1A receptor ligands with varying degrees of intrinsic activity at the 5-HT1A receptor were examined in the conditioned emotional response (CER) test and their effects compared to those of the benzodiazepine receptor agonists, diazepam and chlordiazepoxide. Diazepam (3.0 mg/kg) and chlordiazepoxide (3.0 mg/kg), and the 5-HT1A receptor partial agonists, ipsapirone (10.0 mg/kg) and gepirone (3.0 mg/kg), alleviated conditioned suppression of lever pressing. The 5-HT1A receptor partial agonist, buspirone (0.1-1.0 mg/kg), the 5-HT1A receptor agonist, 8-OH-DPAT (0.01-0.10 mg/kg), and the 5-HT1A receptor antagonist, WAY-100635 (0.03-3.0 mg/kg), had no effects on conditioned fear. Neither enhancing the level of food deprivation nor pretreatment with the amnesic agent scopolamine induced anxiolytic-like effects in the present CER test. The anxiolytic-like effects of ipsapirone in this test were completely reversed by WAY-100635. These results indicate that 5-HT1A agonist, but not antagonist actions, induce an anxiolytic effect in the CER test in rats.