Effects of chronic bromocriptine (CB-154) treatment on the plasma glucose and insulin secretion response to neurocytoglucopenia in rats

Neurocytoglucopenia has been reported to increase both parasympathetic and sympathetic tone with a predominant effect on the latter, which accounts fo r the major effect of plasma hyperglycemia and the inhibition of insulin se cretion. The aim of this study was to determine the effects of chronic trea tment with bromocriptine (0.4 mg/100 g body wt per day), a potent sympathol ytic D-2-dopaminergic agonist, on hyperglycemia and insulin secretion in re sponse to neurocytoglucopenia induced by 2-deoxy-D-glucose (2DG). After 2 w eeks of bromocriptine treatment the animals, freely moving in their cages, were submitted to 2DG administration (50 mg/100 g body wt) via atrial cathe ter infusion. After 2DG infusion, the plasma prolactin of vehicle-treated ( VEH) rats increased rapidly, reaching a peak at 10 min (34.3 +/- 7.6 ng/ml, P<0.01). In contrast, 2DG infusion failed to induce any significant change in the plasma prolactin levels of bromocriptine-treated (BR) rats. BR rats showed higher resting glucose bevels than control rats (8.2 +/- 0.28 mM (B R) vs 6.0 +/- 0.18 mM (VEH); P<0.01). However, the hyperglycemic response o f BR rats to 2DG injection was 30% lower than that of VEH rats (P<0.05). BR rats also showed a rapid rise in plasma insulin levels reaching a peak at 30 min after 2DG injection (243% higher than basal values; P<0.01). This in creased rise in the insulin response to neurocytoglucopenia of BR rats was blocked by previous intravenous injection of atropine methyl nitrate (0-2 m g/100 g body wt). The present results suggest that chronic treatment with bromocriptine deter mines a strong increase in the parasympathetic tone response to neurocytogl ucopenia, which is responsible for the higher stimulation of insulin secret ion observed in BR rats. The data also provide further evidence that D-2-do paminergic agonist can block neurocytoglucopenia-induced prolactin release.