Relation of substance P to stress and catecholamine metabolism

• Published in: Ciba Foundation symposium no. 91; p. 296
• Main Authors: Oehme, P, Hecht, K, Piesche, L, Hilse, H, Rathsack, R
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Netherlands 1982
• Subjects: Adrenal Glands - enzymology; Animals; Behavior, Animal - drug effects; Blood Pressure - drug effects; Catecholamines - biosynthesis; Dopamine beta-Hydroxylase - metabolism; Female; Humans; Male; Phenylethanolamine N-Methyltransferase - metabolism; Rats; Rats, Inbred Strains; Sleep Wake Disorders - blood; Sleep Wake Disorders - drug therapy; Sleep Wake Disorders - etiology; Stress, Physiological - complications; Stress, Physiological - physiopathology; Substance P - blood; Substance P - pharmacology
• ISSN: 0300-5208

Most research on substance P deals with its presumed function in the nervous system. Both excitatory and inhibitory actions have been observed in pharmacological studies. For example, substance P has a dual action on nociception in mice: it produces analgesia or hyperalgesia, depending on the dose and on the individual sensitivity to pain. This is interpreted to mean that substance P is capable of normalizing responsiveness to pain. Thus substance P could be classified as a regulatory peptide, or 'regulide'. A similar normalizing action of substance P was found in stress-induced disorders of sleep, behaviour and blood pressure in rats. The mechanism of this normalizing action is not yet clear. The decrease in activity observed for dopamine beta-hydroxylase and phenylethanolamine N-methyltransferase in adrenal glands of rats treated with the peptide may serve as a preliminary hypothesis.