Pharmacological doses of Zn2+ induce a muscarinic cholinergic supersensitivity

The goal of this study was to evaluate the effect of chronic Zn2+ administration (1 mg/kg/day for 1 month) in Sprague-Dawley rats (n = 11) on motility and rearing behaviors (number of events/10 min measured in motility cage), on memory (percentage of failures using a foot-shock double T maze), on the number of muscarinic receptors (using [(3)H]-QNB as a marker) and on the cholinacetyltransferase (Chat) activity (determined by Fonnun's method) in various brain areas (striatum, hippocampus and frontal cortex), as compared with saline-treated rats (n = 10). Our results showed that Zn2+ induced a decrease in rearing (control: 24.6 +/- 3; Zn2+: 15.91 +/- 2.19) and in locomotor activity (control: 37 +/- 3.79; Zn2+: 25 +/- 4.37), a decrease in failures during memory trials (control: 26.12 +/- 5.6; Zn2+: 5.33 +/- 2.71) and an increase in muscarinic receptor density (fmol/mg) in the striatum (control: 539 +/- 6.18; Zn2+: 720 +/- 14.69), hippocampus (control: 396 +/- 7.41; Zn 2+: 458 +/- 5.05) and frontal cortex (control: 506 +/- 10.28; Zn2+: 716 +/- 16.54). Chat activity (pmol/mg/min) was decreased only in the striatum (control: 4240 +/- 158; Zn2+: 2311 +/- 69). We conclude that Zn 2+ induces a cholinergic functional supersensitivity which is related to receptor upregulation.

Supersensitivity of the cholinergic muscarinic system in the rat's brain is induced by high concentrations of Cu+2

Transition metals have been described as regulators of receptor's function. here, we studied the effects of chronic administration of Cu2+ or the Cu2+ chelator penicillamine (PA) on the functional and binding properties of the muscarinic receptors (MR) on selected areas of rat's brain. Groups of 10 Sprague-Dawley rats were treated daily, for 45 days with either 1) 1 mg/Kg CuSO4 (Cu2+), 2) 100 mg/Kg PA, or 3) saline solution. Double T-maze and motility cages were used for behavioral testing and the binding assays were performed using [3H]-QNB or [3H]-N-MSCP as MR's ligands. Cu2+ brain levels were measured in the cerebral cortex by atomic absorption spectrophotometer. Results showed that PA treated rats displayed a significant decrease of locomotor's activity (LA) and rearing behavior (RB), but a significant increases in memory efficiency (ME). Cu2+ treated rats displayed diminished RB with no significant changes in LA. Cu2+ treated rats displayed higher MR's density (Bmax) in cortex (C), striatum (S), and hippocampus (H). An increase in Bmax was also observed in PA treated rats, but only in C and S. Finally, Cu2+ tissue concentration was significantly higher in C of both Cu2+ and with PA treated animals. In conclusion, 45 days of Cu2+ or PA treatment induced brain hypercuprosis, which was associated with MR binding supersensitivity; however, change in ME was only observed in PA treated rats suggesting that might be still another factor in these experiments besides Cu2+ (i.e., Zn2+ or PA itself) involved in memory modulation.