[The blocade of glutamate metabotropic 5-th tipe receptors prevents the locomotor behavior changes produced by intrastriatal picrotoxin microinjections in rats].

It was demonstrated in chronic experiments in Wistar rats that only the first of daily multiple microinjections of glutamate metabotropic 5-th type receptor antagonist MTEP into the rostral region of neostriatum impaired the avoidance conditioning in a shuttle box. Within the next two weeks, MTEP was ineffective but being injected into the neostriatum simultaneously with picrotoxin prevented the impairment of avoidance conditioning in a shuttle-box and decreased the hyperactivity (open-field locomotor hyperactivity and choreic hyperkinesis) produced by this GABA-A receptor antagonist. The results do not suggest the involvement of striatal glutamate metabotropic 5-th type receptors in avoidance conditioning control but demonstrate that glutamate metabotropic system is involved in behavioral disorders mediated by inhibition of GABA-A receptors. In principle, it might be possible to treat the human hyperkinetic basal ganglia dysfunction (Huntington's horea), athetosis and similar disorders with glutamate metabotropic receptor antagonists.