Behavioral responses to intracerebroventricularly administered neurohypophyseal peptides in mice

Lysine vasopressin (LVP), arginine vasopressin, oxytocin, and arginine vasotocin administered intraventricularly (icv) to mice all provoked a dose-dependent behavioral response in the range 0.1 - 1.0 μg. This response included a pronounced hyperactivity, extensive foraging, increased grooming, and at higher doses, stereotyped scratching, squeaking, and occasional barrel rolling. The four hormones were all approximately equipotent. Desglycinamide lysine vasopressin and [desaminocys₁, D-Arg₈] vasopressin produced some of the characteristic behaviors, but were much less potent. While pretreatment of the animals with reserpine (5 mg/kg ip), haloperidol (0.5 mg/kg ip), or physostigmine (0.5 mg/kg ip) sedated the animals and attenuated the locomotion and grooming, these drugs did not substantially alter the characteristic behavioral responses to LVP. Pretreatment with α-methyl-p-tyrosine (400 mg/kg ip), p-chlorophenylalanine (320 mg/kg ip), 6-hydroxydopamine (100 μg icv), ergotamine (0.5 μg icv), ethoxolamide (52 ng icv), diphenhydramine (20 μg icv), prostaglondin F_2α (2 μg icv), or naloxone (1 mg/kg ip) did not alter the LVP-induced behaviors. None of these drugs or d-amphetamine (0.5 to 20 mg/kg ip) or nicotine (0.1 or 1 μg icv) mimicked the behavioral effects of the hormones.