The International Journal of Neuropsychopharmacology

Table of Contents - 2008 - Volume 11, Issue 07  

Research Article

Nandrolone abuse decreases anxiety and impairs memory in rats via central androgenic receptors

Dimitrios Kouvelasa1 c1, Chrysa Pourzitakia1, Georgios Papazisisa1, Themistoklis Dagklisa1, Konstantinos Dimoua1 and Michaela M. Krausa2

a1 Department of Pharmacology, School of Medicine, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Thessaloniki, Greece

a2 Hospital Pharmacy, Innsbruck Medical University Hospital, Innsbruck, Austria

Abstract

Anabolic androgenic steroids (AASs) affect areas of the central nervous system, which are involved in emotional and cognitive responses such as sexuality, anxiety, and memory. In the present study we imitated the abuse of AASs by administering high doses of the AAS nandrolone decanoate (ND) to rats. Thereafter rats were exposed to an elevated plus-maze and an olfactory social memory test to evaluate their anxiety-like and cognitive behaviour. To reveal whether these emotional and cognitive changes evoked by ND were caused via direct activation of androgenic receptors (ARs) in the brain, the AR antagonist flutamide (FL) was administered intracerebroventricularly (i.c.v.). Male rats were randomly divided in four groups, one group received 15 mg/kg ND subcutaneously, once daily for 6 wk (ND group). In the second group, in addition to ND, a daily dose of 5 μg FL was injected i.c.v. also for 6 wk (ND+FL group). The third group of rats received only FL and in the control group the vehicle was injected. The ND group clearly spent more time investigating the open arms in the maze test and recognizing the juvenile during the olfactory social memory test in comparison to the control group. In the ND+FL group rats showed similar emotional behaviour and cognitive ability to that of the control group. Injection of FL alone did not affect either anxiety or memory. These results indicate that repeated, high-dose administration of ND decreases anxiety and impairs memory in rats via direct activation of central ARs.

(Received December 22 2007)

(Reviewed January 19 2008)

(Revised March 02 2008)

(Accepted March 05 2008)

(Online publication April 14 2008)

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Correspondence:

c1 Address for correspondence: D. Kouvelas M.D., B.Pharm., Ph.D., Associate Professor of Pharmacology and Therapeutics, Department of Pharmacology, School of Medicine, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, P.O. Box 1532, GR-54006, Thessaloniki, Greece. Tel.: +30 2310 999335 Fax: +30 2310 999335 E-mail: kouvelas@auth.gr

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