Effects of 5-HT Agonist, Fluoxetine, and 5-HT Antagonist, Ondansetron, on the Competitive Behavior of Rats. | ||||
| Suez Canal Veterinary Medical Journal. SCVMJ | ||||
| Articles in Press, Accepted Manuscript, Available Online from 06 August 2024 | ||||
| Document Type: Original Article | ||||
| DOI: 10.21608/scvmj.2024.307735.1177 | ||||
 View on SCiNiTO | ||||
| Authors | ||||
Mirna E. ElAwady  1; Reem M. Hazem2; Manal M. Abdelhady3; Dina M. Kodeer2
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| 1Egypt Healthcare Authority, Comprehensive Health Insurance, Ismailia, Egypt | ||||
| 2Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Faculty of Pharmacy, Suez Canal University, Ismailia, Egypt. | ||||
| 3Department of Pharmacy practice, Faculty of Pharmacy, Badr University, Cairo, Egypt | ||||
| Abstract | ||||
| Background and aim of the work: Reduced brain serotonin (5-HT) activity was noted to be associated with an increased aggression in animals, and vice versa. The aim of the current study was to investigate the effects of 5-HT agonist and antagonist, fluoxetine and ondansetron, respectively, on the competitive behavior of rats and their brain 5-HT levels. Methods: Forty male albino rats were housed as pairs (dyads). All rats were food-deprived 23 hours/day. Based on competition results, dyads were classified into stable and unstable dyads, according to their success or failure in maintaining their social ranking. Stable dyads were divided into 2 halves and 4 treatment groups. In the first half, stable winners and partner losers were treated with fluoxetine (FLX) (10 mg/kg body weight, i.p) or ondansetron (OND) (1 mg/kg body weight, i.p), respectively, and vice versa in the second half. Unstable dyads of rats that fail to retain their social ranking formed additional treatment group. The effect of treatment with fluoxetine (10 mg/kg body weight, i.p) or ondansetron (1 mg/kg body weight, i.p) on inducing a stable social ranking was investigated. At the end of the study, using Elisa, 5-HT concentrations were determined in brains extracted from winners and losers of all treatment groups. Results: Fourteen out of twenty dyads showed a stable hierarchy. FLX treatment of winners produced a significant reduction in their competition scores; whereas OND produced a significant increase in the competition scores of treated losers. Similarly, FLX depressed the competitive behavior of the previously unstable rats to become stable losers; OND could enhance the competitive behavior of the previously unstable dyads to retain the stable winner position. OND has shown a depressive effect on the serotonin levels in the brains of all OND-treated rats. In contrast, serotonin levels were elevated in the brains of all FLX- treated rats. Conclusion: FLX and OND had a depressive and enhancing effects, respectively, on competitive behavior of rats. The rats’ brain 5-HT levels were inversely related to the competitive behavior of rats. | ||||
| Keywords | ||||
| Fluoxetine; ondansetron; social hierarchy; serotonin | ||||
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