[Catecholamine levels in the striatum, hypothalamus, and adrenals of rats with genetic predisposition to epileptic seizures].

The content of catecholamines (CA) was studied in the basal ganglia, hypothalamus and adrenals of Krushinsky-Molodkina (KM) rats exhibiting the increased sensitivity to convulsants, and of non-audiogenic Wistar rats. It was found that in all the structures under test the content of CA was considerably higher in KM than in Wistar rats. At the same time the concentration of dopamine in the basal ganglia and hypothalamus was far greater than that of the subsequent reaction products (noradrenaline, homovanillic and dioxyphenyl acetic acids), and the concentration of dopamine in the adrenals exceeded that of noradrenaline and adrenaline. Excess dopamine in the basal ganglia seems likely to be the reason for the failure of caudate nucleus inhibitory function in KM rats, thereby contributing to the increased sensitivity of the animals to convulsants. The relationship between the sensitivity to stressors and the initial level of CA metabolism is discussed.