Cocaine-amphetamine regulated transcript (CART) expression is not regulated by amphetamine

Abstract

Cocaine-amphetamine-regulated transcript (CART) is one of the most abundantly expressed mRNAs in the rat hypothalamus. Nevertheless, CART was identified from striatal extracts as a transcript induced acutely by cocaine or amphetamine treatment. In the hypothalamus, CART mRNA expression has been shown to be regulated by leptin, and CART peptides have been implicated in feeding behavior and in the regulation of the HPA-axis. In the present experiments we have re-examined the effects of amphetamine on CART expression in the forebrain and in the hypothalamus by the use of in situ hybridization. Although we used the same amphetamine treatment paradigm as that originally reported we failed to demonstrate any regulation of CART mRNA levels by amphetamine in either the forebrain or in the hypothalamus. The present results question the acronym chosen for this predominantly hyopthalamic neuropeptide.