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Few studies have investiga.ted whether the behavioral effects elicited by different types of antidepressant drugs are mediated by either serotonin (5-HT) or the catecholamines norepinephrine (NE) and dopamine (DA).

By depleting 5-HT, or NE and DA, the present study investigated the contributions of these monoamines to the acute behavioral effects of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs; fluoxetine and citalopram) and norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors (NRIs; desipramine and reboxetine) in the mouse tail suspension test (TST).

Depletion of 5-HT tissue content by para-chlorophenylalanine (PCPA), an inhibitor of tryptophan hydroxylase, completely blocked reductions of immobility by the SSRIs in the TST. In contrast, PCPA did not alter the behavioral effects of the NRIs. Inhibition …