Canadian journal of physiology and pharmacology
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Can. J. Physiol. Pharmacol. · Jun 1984
Comparative StudyComparison of the effects of Althesin, chloralose-urethane, urethane, and pentobarbital on mammalian physiologic responses.
Physiological responses to anesthetic doses of four chemically dissimilar agents, namely, Althesin, urethane, chloralose-urethane, and pentobarbital sodium were compared in rats. The tail-flick test revealed Althesin had greater antinociceptive potency than urethane, chloralose-urethane, and pentobarbital, but its duration of action was shorter than that of chloralose-urethane. ⋯ It is concluded that Althesin is a suitable anesthetic for short-term surgery and for studies of body temperature, heart rate, and mean arterial pressure. Because release of gonadotropin-releasing hormone into hypophysial portal blood can be observed under Althesin but is suppressed or blocked by chloralose-urethane, urethane, and pentobarbital, Althesin is the anesthetic of choice in studies concerned with the neural control of ovulatory hormone release.