Blockade of phencyclidine-induced effects by a nitric oxide donor.
British journal of pharmacology July 1, 2000 M Bujas-Bobanovic, D C Bird, H A Robertson et al.
In rats, the drug phencyclidine (PCP) produced a complex behavioral syndrome including hyperlocomotion, stereotyped behaviors, and ataxia, and increased expression of the neuronal activity marker c-fos in brain regions, especially the cortex. The nitric oxide donor sodium nitroprusside (SNP) alone had no effect but completely blocked both the behavioral and c-fos responses to PCP in a dose- and time-dependent manner. These findings implicate the nitric oxide system in PCP's mechanism and suggest that drugs targeting the glutamate-nitric oxide system could offer a novel treatment approach for PCP-induced psychosis and schizophrenia.