The Role of Dopaminergic VTA Neurons in General Anesthesia

• Published in: PloS one Vol. 10; no. 9; p. e0138187
• Main Authors: Zhou, Xuelong, Wang, Yin, Zhang, Chenjing, Wang, Min, Zhang, Mei, Yu, LiNa, Yan, Min
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Public Library of Science 23.09.2015; Public Library of Science (PLoS)
• Subjects: 6-Hydroxydopamine; Anesthesia; Anesthesia, General; Anesthesiology; Animals; Comparative analysis; Dopamine; Dopamine receptors; Dopaminergic mechanisms; Dopaminergic Neurons - drug effects; Dopaminergic Neurons - pathology; Drug dosages; General anesthesia; Health aspects; Isoflurane; Isoflurane - pharmacology; Ketamine; Ketamine - pharmacology; Laboratories; Lesions; Male; Medical research; Medicine; Neurons; Oxidopamine; Physiological aspects; Propofol; Propofol - pharmacology; Rats; Rats, Sprague-Dawley; Recovery time; Rodents; Sleep; Ventral Tegmental Area - drug effects; Ventral Tegmental Area - pathology; Ventral tegmentum; China
• ISSN: 1932-6203; 1932-6203
• DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0138187

Recent studies have demonstrated that the central dopaminergic system is implicated in the mechanism underlying general anesthesia. Here, we investigated whether dopaminergic ventral tegmental area (VTA) neurons participate in general anesthesia. Dopaminergic VTA neurons were selectively ablated from male Sprague Dawley rats via the bilateral infusion of 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA) into the VTA. Two weeks after infusion, the number of dopaminergic neurons in the bilateral VTA was markedly reduced in the 6-OHDA-treated rats compared with the vehicle-treated rats. These bilateral VTA lesions significantly prolonged the recovery time for propofol but did not significantly alter its onset time or 50% effective dose (ED50) value. In addition, the anesthetic responses to isoflurane and ketamine were unaffected by the VTA lesions. Our findings suggested that dopaminergic VTA neurons might be involved in the emergence from propofol anesthesia.