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Characterizing the Acute Cardiovascular Toxicities of Cocaine in Freely Moving Rhesus Monkeys
Author(s) -
Collins Gregory Thomas,
Woods James Henry,
Ko MeiChuan
Publication year - 2009
Publication title -
the faseb journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.709
H-Index - 277
eISSN - 1530-6860
pISSN - 0892-6638
DOI - 10.1096/fasebj.23.1_supplement.589.6
Subject(s) - medicine , heart rate , blood pressure , emergency medicine , pharmacology
Cocaine (COC) abuse remains a significant public health problem with an estimated 2.4 million users in the United States alone (SAMHSA, 2007). COC is not only the most commonly reported illicit drug involved in emergency room (ER) visits, but COC‐related visits have increased ~160% from 1995 to 2005, with admissions most commonly attributed to chest pain resulting from increases in blood pressure (BP) and heart rate (HR). These studies were aimed at characterizing the acute cardiovascular (CV) effects of COC in freely moving rhesus monkeys (n=4). Implantable radio‐telemetric probes (DSI; D70‐PCT) were used to collect continuous measures of BP, HR, ECG parameters, body temperature, and locomotor activity for a period of 2 hrs after COC administration (0, 0.1, 0.32, 1.0, and 3.2 mg/kg; iv). BP and HR were the most reliable indicators of COC intoxication, with dose‐dependent increases in BP and HR (magnitude and duration) observed following doses of 0.32‐3.2 mg/kg COC. These changes in CV activity are not only similar to those observed in the ER, but also provide a model to compare the effectiveness of currently used, and novel therapeutics for the treatment of acute COC‐induced CV toxicity. Supported by NIDA grant DA 023213