Alcohol and Alcoholism Vol. 38, No. 3, pp. 197-201, 2003
© 2003 Medical Council on Alcohol
IN VIVO FORMATION OF SALSOLINOL INDUCED BY HIGH ACETALDEHYDE CONCENTRATION IN RAT STRIATUM EMPLOYING MICRODIALYSIS
Department of Forensic Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Kagawa Medical University, 1750-1, Ikenobe, Miki, Kita, Kagawa 761-0793, Japan
Received 12 March 2002; first review notified 12 August 2002; accepted 28 October 2002
Aims: The in vivo formation of salsolinol (1-methyl-6,7-dihydroxy-1,2,3,4-tetrahydroisoquionoline), an endogeneous condensation product of dopamine (DA) with acetaldehyde (AcH), was examined following the administration of cyanamide (CY) plus ethanol (EtOH) using microdialysis-high-performance liquid chromatography with electrochemical detection. Methods: After the insertion of a microdialysis probe into the striatum, rats were treated with CY (a potent inhibitor of aldehyde dehydrogenase, 50 mg/kg), 4-methylpyrazole (4-MP, a strong inhibitor of alcohol dehydrogenase, 82 mg/kg), and CY + 4-MP, followed 1 h later by EtOH (1 g/kg), CY and 4-MP only by intraperitoneal administration. Results: In the CY + EtOH group, salsolinol was detected in striatal dialysates and high AcH concentrations were found in the blood. The time course of changes in salsolinol concentrations correlated with blood AcH concentrations. In the other experimental groups, salsolinol in the dialysates and high AcH concentrations in the blood were not detected. Conclusions: These observations indicate that: (1) high AcH concentrations induce the formation of salsolinol in the rat striatum; (2) there is no effect of EtOH or AcH on striatal dialysate concentrations of DA and 5-hydroxytryptamine.