Antidepressive and antihypertensive effects of MAO-A inhibition: role of N-acetylserotonin. A review.

                              Oxenkrug GF

                              Department of Psychiatry, St. Elizabeth's Medical Center/Tufts University, Boston, MA 02135, USA.

                              Acute administration of irreversible and reversible selective MAO-A inhibitors and high doses (or chronic administration of low doses) of relatively selective MAO-B
                              inhibitors (but not of highly selective MAO-B inhibitors) suppressed MAO-A activity and stimulated N-acetylation of pineal serotonin into N-acetylserotonin, the
                              immediate precursor of melatonin. Consequent increase of melatonin occurs only in > 21-days-old rats. The effect is strain (spontaneously hypertensive rats >
                              Fisher344N > Wistar Kyoto > Sprague-Dawley) and gender (male > female) dependent. N-acetylserotonin increase after clorgyline was weaker in the light-primed
                              aged (or young animals with lesioned suprachiasmatic nuclei) than in young intact or sham-operated rats. N-acetylserotonin increase after MAO-A inhibitors might
                              mediate their antidepressive (N-acetylserotonin and melatonin exerted antidepressant-like activity in the mouse tail-suspension and frog tests) and antihypertensive
                              effects (N-acetylserotonin, but not melatonin, decreased blood pressure in spontaneously hypertensive rats).

                              Publication Types:
                                     Review
                                     Review literature

                              PMID: 10591054, UI: 20058583