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Gamma aminobutyric acid (GABA)-A receptor modulators constitute the majority of clinically relevant sedative-hypnotics. Zolpidem (Ambien) is a nonbenzodiazepine GABA-A receptor modulator that binds with high affinity to GABA-A receptors expressing alpha-1 subunits. The present study examined the effects of a new approach to the oral administration of zolpidem on locomotor activity, body weight, food intake, relative food intake, feed efficiency, anxiety, and visceral adiposity in rats. Effects of withdrawal associated with cessation of the drug were also recorded. A daily chronically administered oral 10 mg/kg dose of zolpidem caused a decrease in locomotor activity, an increase in food intake and relative food intake, and a more positive feed efficiency during the drug-administration period. Anxiety and visceral adiposity also increased in animals receiving the drug. During withdrawal of zolpidem, there was a decrease in body weight, food intake, relative food intake, and anxiety, as well as a negative feed efficiency. These results suggest that zolpidem can modulate locomotor activity, metabolism, and anxiety-related behavior. A highly positive feed efficiency and increased visceral adiposity associated with zolpidem intake were unique findings of this study.

The GABA(A) receptor complex contains a number of binding sites at which a variety of psychotropic drugs, including benzodiazepines, barbiturates, and some neurosteroids, act to potentiate or inhibit the effect of the transmitter. Many studies have reported that these drugs can produce discriminative stimulus actions, but the cueing effects of compounds acting at different sites to enhance the effects of GABA are not identical. The discriminative stimulus effects of benzodiazepines have been analyzed in detail, and there is also a great deal of information available on the effects of nonbenzodiazepine compounds acting at BZ(omega) recognition sites, which form part of the GABA(A) receptor complex. Of particular interest are compounds with selectivity for the BZ1(omega1) receptor subtype including zolpidem, zaleplon, and CI 218,872. BZ1(omega1)-selective drugs substitute for the discriminative stimulus produced by chlordiazepoxide only partially and at sedative doses. This is consistent with the view that sedative effects of BZ(omega) receptor agonists are mediated by the BZ1(omega1) receptor subtype, whereas the discriminative stimulus produced by chlordiazepoxide may be produced by activity at the BZ2(omega2) subtype. Analysis of this hypothesis is complicated by the variety of levels of intrinsic activity shown by different drugs.

The present experiments compared the behavioral effects of two novel BZ (ϖ) receptor agonists, the pyridazinone Y-23684 (1–30 mg/kg) and the pyrido[1,2-a]benzimidazole RWJ-46771 (0.01–0.3 mg/kg) with the BZs diazepam (0.5–3 mg/kg) and clobazam (1–30 mg/kg) in the mouse defense test battery (MDTB), a model for the screening of anxiolytic drugs. In the MDTB, Swiss mice were confronted with a natural threat (a rat) and situations associated with this threat. Primary measures taken during and after rat confrontation were flight, risk assessment, defensive threat/attack, and escape attempts. Results showed that clobazam and Y-23684 significantly modified all defense responses in the presence of the rat at doses that did not decrease spontaneous locomotor activity. These drugs decreased avoidance reactions after the rat was introduced into the runway, reduced flight speed and risk assessment activities of mice chased by the rat, increased risk assessment displayed when subjects were constrained in a straight alley, and reduced defensive threat and attack behaviors upon forced contact. Diazepam significantly decreased all but one (number of avoidances when the rat was first introduced into the runway) defensive behaviors. RWJ-46771 reduced risk assessment in the chase test, avoidance responses, flight speed, and defensive threat and attack reactions, but these effects occurred in the great part at motor-impairing doses, suggesting that the decrease in defensiveness may have been contaminated by behavioral suppression. Finally, following the removal of the rat from the runway, only Y-23684 reduced escape behavior at doses that did not decrease spontaneous behavior. Taken together, these findings demonstrate that Y-23684 displayed anxiolytic-like activity comparable to that of BZs in the MDTB. Although RWJ-46771 significantly modified most defensive behaviors, the effects may have been confounded by decreases in locomotor activity.

Drugs such as benzodiazepines, which enhance the effects of inhibitory neurotransmitter gamma-amino butyric acid (GABA), are known to modulate the mesocorticolimbic dopaminergic system, which is considered to mediate the rewarding effects of psychostimulants. The effects of diazepam, a benzodiazepine that binds unspecifically to omega 1- (omega1-) and omega2-receptors, and zolpidem, a nonbenzodiazepine drug that binds preferentially to omega1-receptors, on cocaine- and amphetamine-induced place preference were evaluated in Wistar rats. In tests using the counterbalanced method, neither diazepam (0.2, 1, and 5 mg/kg) nor zolpidem (2.5, 5, and 10 mg/kg) alone induced place preference or place aversion. Diazepam pretreatment prevented both cocaine- and amphetamine-induced (15 and 9 mg/kg, respectively) place preference; however, at doses that were earlier shown to cause sedation and amnesia, zolpidem failed to prevent either cocaine- or amphetamine-induced place preference. These results suggest that diazepam interferes with the rewarding properties of the psychostimulants, whereas zolpidem is less effective in this respect, possibly due to differential distribution of omega1- and omega2-receptors in the brain.

Isolated from their mother, rat pups respond with changes in ultrasound vocalization (USV), a paradigm that can be used as a test for a large range of anxiolytics. Because the relation between corticosterone (CORT) and putative stress responses like USV is not clear, we examined the effects of the benzodiazepine drugs chlordiazepoxide and diazepam vs. the nonbenzodiazepine drugs buspirone and 8-hydroxy-2-(di-n-propylamino)tetralin (8-OH-DPAT) on USV and plasma CORT concentrations. All drugs caused a dose-related decrease in USV, but only buspirone and 8-OH-DPAT induced a dose-related increase in CORT. We suggest that the seemingly paradoxical effects of buspirone and 8-OH-DPAT, that is, the decrease in USV and the concomitant increase in plasma CORT, are due to the fact that these two drugs act as full agonists at both pre- and postsynaptic 5-HT1A receptors. Our results indicate that, when measured as an increase in the activity of the pituitary adrenocortical axis, the stress response can be interpreted in markedly different ways, depending on whether the increased activity is elicited by an environmental stressor or by pharmacological manipulation.

Clinical trials have indicated that buspirone (Buspar) is effective in the treatment of anxiety with efficacy and dosage comparable to diazepam. Until recently it has been thought that antianxiety drugs must alter benzodiazepine receptor binding in vitro. However, buspirone lacks any structural similarity to te benzodiazepines and does not interact with the benzodiazepine/gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) axis. Specifically, buspirone neither stimulates nor inhibits [3H]benzodiazepine binding, does not affect the influence o GABA or halide anions on benzodiazepine binding, and does not interfere with GABA binding or uptake. Behavioral testing has revealed that buspirone does not produce muscle weakness, does not control seizures, does not potentiate the impairment of psychophysiological function or lethality produced by administration of CNS depressants, does not produce sedation/hypnosis and does not appear to possess any abuse potential or liability for physical dependence. Thus, buspirone has been termed an anxioselective agent. Buspirone appears to only interact with the dopaminergic system with reasonable potency and exhibits properties of both a dopamine agonist and a dopamine antagonist. This suggests that dopamine is implicated in the etiology and expression of anxiety. A discussion of this implication is presented with a review of the clinical efficacy of nonbenzodiazepine drugs, especially dopamine agonists and dopamine antagonists, in the management of anxiety. In addition, neuropharmacological studies which have investigated the role of dopamine in animal models of anxiety are considered. Finally, the multiplicity of dopamine receptors and their regional localization in the brain are considered in the formulation of an hypothesis which features a role for the dopaminergic agents in the pharmacotherapy of anxiety.

There is a need for safe effective alternatives to benzodiazepines in the treatment of panic disorder. Buspirone, a new nonbenzodiazepine anxiolytic, is compared to imipramine and placebo in the treatment of panic disorder in an 8 week double-blind controlled study of 52 randomly assigned patients. Weekly assessments were made using the Hamilton Anxiety Scale, the Sheehan Clinician Rated Anxiety Scale, the Sheehan Patient Rated Anxiety Scale, the Phobia Scale, the Disability Scale, the Hamilton Depression Scale, the Montgomery Asberg Depression Scale, the Investigator Rated Global Improvement Scale and the Patient Rated Global Improvement Scale. Preliminary results of repeated measures Anovas are reported. Imipramine was superior to placebo on many of the outcome measures. Imipramine was superior to buspirone on the Patient Rated Global Improvement Scale and on the Investigator Rated Global Improvement Scale, but not on other measures. Although buspirone appeared to be more effective than placebo, differences were not statistically significant. Some buspirone patients did very well compared to others, suggesting a possible bimodal distribution of response. Patients on buspirone had fewer and less disruptive side effects than those on imipramine.