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GENERAL ANAESTHETICS AND THE ACETYLCHOLINE‐SENSITIVITY OF CORTICAL NEURONES
Author(s) -
SMAJE J.C.
Publication year - 1976
Publication title -
british journal of pharmacology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.432
H-Index - 211
eISSN - 1476-5381
pISSN - 0007-1188
DOI - 10.1111/j.1476-5381.1976.tb07712.x
Subject(s) - acetylcholine , excitatory postsynaptic potential , chemistry , halothane , atropine , methoxyflurane , neuroscience , pharmacology , anesthesia , biochemistry , medicine , biology , receptor , organic chemistry
1 The effects of general anaesthetics on neuronal responses to iontophoretically‐applied acetylcholine have been examined in slices of guinea‐pig olfactory cortex maintained in vitro . 2 Acetylcholine excited 61% of the prepiriform neurones tested. The excitation was blocked by atropine, but not by dihydro‐β‐erythroidine or gallamine. 3 Alphaxalone reversibly depressed the acetylcholine‐sensitivity of prepiriform neurones. Pentobarbitone did not consistently depress the acetylcholine sensitivity of these cells. 4 Ether, methoxyflurane, trichloroethylene and halothane caused a dose‐related augmentation of acetylcholine‐induced firing. 5 These results show that general anaesthetics do not necessarily depress the sensitivity of nerve cells to all excitatory substances and that different anaesthetics may affect a particular excitatory process in various ways.