The α 2A ‐adrenoceptor subtype plays a key role in the analgesic and sedative effects of xylazine

Xylazine, the classical α 2 ‐adrenoceptor (α 2 ‐AR) agonist, is still used as an analgesic and sedative in veterinary medicine, despite its low potency and affinity for α 2 ‐ARs. Previous pharmacological studies suggested that the α 2A ‐AR subtype plays a role in mediating the clinical effects of xylazine; however, these studies were hampered by the poor subtype‐selectivity of the antagonists used and a lack of knowledge of their bioavailability in vivo. Here, we attempted to elucidate the role of the α 2A ‐AR subtype in mediating the clinical effects of xylazine by comparing the analgesic and sedative effects of this drug in wild‐type mice with those in α 2A ‐AR functional knockout mice using the hot‐plate and open field tests, respectively. Hippocampal noradrenaline turnover in both mice was also measured to evaluate the contribution of α 2A ‐AR subtype to the inhibitory effect of xylazine on presynaptic noradrenaline release. In wild‐type mice, xylazine (10 or 30 mg/kg) increased the hot‐plate latency. Furthermore, xylazine (3 or 10 mg/kg) inhibited the open field locomotor activity and decreased hippocampal noradrenaline turnover. By contrast, all of these effects were abolished in α 2A ‐AR functional knockout mice. These results indicate that the α 2A ‐AR subtype is mainly responsible for the clinical effects of xylazine.