Modification by oxazepam of the diurnal variations in brain¹²⁵I-melatonin binding sites in sham-operated and pinealectomized rats

Sham-operated and pinealectomized male rats were maintained at 14h light: 10 h dark cycles (lights-on 5.00 h) and injected daily, for 14 days, with oxazepam or vehicle.¹²⁵I-melatonin binding was recorded in synaptosomes prepared at 10.00, 18.00, and 24.00 h from the hypothalamus, hippocampus and medulla-pons of the rats. In the sham-operated, vehicle treated rats, specific¹²⁵I-melatonin binding in all brain areas studied was higher at 18.00 h, whereas in the oxazepam-treated animals, binding was higher at 24.00 h than at the other times tested. In the pinealectomized, vehicle-treated rats, the binding recorded at 18.00 h in all three brain areas, was lower than at the other times of day tested. Oxazepam treatment decreased¹²⁵I-melatonin binding at 24.00 h in the hippocampus and medulla-pons of the pinealectomized rats and did not significantly affect the binding in the hypothalamus. These results indicate the ability of oxazepam, pinealectomy and their combination, to manipulate the diurnal variations in¹²⁵I-melatonin binding sites in the rat brain.