The influence of salsolinol on basic rat metabolism.

Parkinson's disease (PD) is associated with a broad spectrum of non-motor symptoms, which are poorly understood and foremost, may precede motor impairment. These symptoms include weight changes and gastrointestinal dysregulation. In our experiment, we applied salsolinol given peripherally and continuously in rats to induce changes in the enteric nervous system, which might be similar to those observed in PD patients. Surprisingly, we noted decrease in body weight and alteration in body fat contents of the animals during salsolinol exposure. The blood glucose levels, lipid profile and hepatic enzymes levels were assessed as well. While lipid profile, postprandial blood glucose and hepatic enzymes levels remained indifferent, postprandial triglyceridemia was significantly lower in all salsolinol-treated rats in comparison with the control, which might be related to disturbed absorption. We also suggest that diminished body weight gain and lower adipose tissue accumulation in salsolinol-treated animals were due to delayed gastric emptying together with disturbed gut function resulting in absorptive dysfunction.