Serotonin transporter function in vivo: Assessment by chronoamperometry

Local application of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, fluvoxamine and citalopram, prolonged the clearance of exogenously administered serotonin (5-HT) in both the dentate gyrus and CA3 region of the dorsal hippocampus, as measured using in vivo chronoamperometry. These effects were abolished in rats pretreated with 5,7-dihydroxytryptamine. The NE uptake inhibitors, desipramine and protriptyline, did not alter the 5-HT signal in the CA3 region, but prolonged the clearance of 5-HT in the dentate gyrus; this effect was absent in rats pretreated with 6-hydroxydopamine. From these data, it is inferred that both the SERT and NET contribute to the active clearance of exogenously applied 5-HT in the dentate gyrus. In another experiment, cyanopindolol, an antagonist of the serotonin terminal autoreceptor, also prolonged the clearance of 5-HT from the CA3 region. These and other data have generated a working hypothesis that activation of the terminal serotonin autoreceptor enhances the kinetics of 5-HT uptake through an effect on the serotonin transporter.