Action of 1,6-Dimethyl-SB-(Bromoisonicotinoyl-Oxymethyl)-10a- Methoxyergoline (SermionR) on Some Molecular Processes in the Brain

The influence of SermionR on cellular protein synthesis in the mouse brain was studied in vivo, after an intraperitoneal administration of 50 microgram doses. The brain samples analyzed at different intervals after drug treatment showed a short-term increase of 3H-Leucine incorporation into proteins, followed by a. gradual decline of uptake. The latter reached control levels about 18 h after drug administration. Under similar experimental treatments Sermion had no effect on the synthesis of RNA catalyzed by Mg++- ions; however, a slight stimulation of the Mn++- activated RNA synthesis was obserwed. Mice receiving i. p. injections of 50 micrograms of Sermion showed an increased brain rnethyltransferase activity; the maximum stimulation was observed one hour after drug treatment. In another set of experiments the capacity of mouse brain preparations to catalyze the methyl group incorporation into the exogenously added transfer RNA (tRNA) was found to decrease with increasing age of the animals; the addition of 10-4 M Sermion to the incubation medium enhanced endogenous rnethylation, especially in the older animals. On the other hand the capacity to methylate the exogenously added heterologous tRNA was not effected by Sermion, irrespective of the age of the animals. In an attempt to understand the physiological relevance of the biochemical effects of Sermion, we have carried out some studies on the effect of this drug on conditioned learning in rats. The preliminary data indicate that the drug is able to enhance the learning quotients, however, more experiments are in progress to reach a definitive conclusion.