The hallucinogen d-lysergic acid diethylamide (d-LSD) induces the immediate-early gene c-Fos in rat forebrain
Paul S. Frankel, Kathryn A. Cunningham
Brain Research December 1, 2002 DOI: 10.1016/s0006-8993(02)03548-5 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Experimental study Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Population | Rats |
| Intervention | d-lysergic acid diethylamide (d-LSD) |
| Dose | 0.16 mg/kg |
| Duration | 4 hours |
| Topics | LSD |
| Keywords | Forebrain Stria terminalis Nucleus accumbens C-fos Hallucinogen Immediate early gene Endocrinology Pharmacology Central nervous system |
| Citations | 41 |
| Key findings | A low dose of d-LSD (0.16 mg/kg) induces time- and region-dependent c-Fos expression in the rat forebrain, with significant increases in the anterior cingulate cortex, nucleus accumbens shell, lateral bed nucleus of the stria terminalis, and paraventricular hypothalamic nucleus. |
Abstract
The hallucinogen d-lysergic acid diethylamide (d-LSD) evokes dramatic somatic and psychological effects. In order to analyze the neural activation induced by this unique psychoactive drug, we tested the hypothesis that expression of the immediate-early gene product c-Fos is induced in specific regions of the rat forebrain by a relatively low, behaviorally active, dose of d-LSD (0.16 mg/kg, i.p.); c-Fos protein expression was assessed at 30 min, and 1, 2 and 4 h following d-LSD injection. A time- and region-dependent expression of c-Fos was observed with a significant increase (P<0.05) in the number of c-Fos-positive cells detected in the anterior cingulate cortex at 1 h, the shell of the nucleus accumbens at 1 and 2 h, the bed nucleus of stria terminalis lateral at 2 h and the paraventricular hypothalamic nucleus at 1, 2 and 4 h following systemic d-LSD administration. These data demonstrate a unique pattern of c-Fos expression in the rat forebrain following a relatively low dose of d-LSD and suggest that activation of these forebrain regions contributes to the unique behavioral effects of d-LSD.
Comparable studies
Other preclinical and animal studies on LSD, most cited first.
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Cites 15
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