Sustained downregulation of cortical adrenergic receptor density with maintenance electroconvulsive stimulation

Central β-adrenergic receptor downregulation is a robust and reversible neurochemical finding in animals after a course of electroconvulsive stimulation (ECS) or antidepressant drug administration. In addition, β- receptors are essential components of monoamine-based models of affective disorder pathogenesis and treatment. We tested whether the downregulation in rat cortical β-receptor density observed after an initial series of ECS is maintained over 2 months of maintenance ECS. Our findings confirm prior reports, in the absence of maintenance ECS, that receptor density is decreased after a course of 10 daily ECS, with recovery to baseline 16 days after the last ECS. In contrast, when maintenance ECS was given for 2 months after an initial series of 10 ECS, a schedule of maintenance ECS at two per week was sufficient to sustain the receptor downregulation. The results are discussed in terms of the neurochemical study of ECS in animals and implications for maintenance ECS.