Parasympathetically evoked parotid salivary secretion of chronically amitriptyline-treated rats

Summary Treatment of rats with amitriptyline for 4 weeks significantly decreased flow rate of saliva elicited from parotid glands in response to electrical stimulation of the parasympathetic innervation but did not alter calcium concentration of such saliva. The mechanism of the dissociation between flow rate and calcium concentration of parasympathetically evoked saliva induced by amitriptyline treatment remains to be explored, and may not involve an amitriptyline induced reduction in acetylcholine release.Acknowledgments. This work was supported by NIDR grant No. DE 02110. The authors wish to thank Dr C. A. Stone of Merck, Sharp and Dohme, Inc., West Point Pennsylvania 19466 for kindly supplying the amitriptyline used in these experiments.