The benzodiazepine receptor inverse agonist FG 7142 induces cholecystokinin gene expression in rat brain.

The effects of acute administration of the anxiogenic benzodiazepine receptor ligand, N-methyl-beta-carboline-3-carboxamide (FG 7142) and of a single exposure to the elevated plus-maze test of anxiety on preprocholecystokinin mRNA levels in rat brain were examined using the technique of in situ hybridisation. Administration of FG 7142 (10 mg/kg i.p.), but not elevated plus-maze exposure, increased cholecystokinin (CCK) mRNA levels in the basolateral amygdala and the CA3 pyramidal cell layer of the hippocampus. Neither stimulus produced changes in thalamic structures. These data suggest that drug-induced anxiety can induce CCK gene expression in brain structures previously implicated in anxiety.