JOURNAL OF INTERNATIONAL MEDICAL RESEARCH, vol.47, no.8, pp.3831-3840, 2019 (SCI-Expanded)
Objective To assess the effectiveness of pre-treatment with aripiprazole and quetiapine to prevent acute cocaine toxicity in a mouse model of cocaine toxicity. Methods This experimental study included three groups (n = 25 per group) of mice that were intraperitoneally injected with normal saline solution, 10 mg/kg quetiapine or 10 mg/kg aripiprazole 15 min before 105 mg/kg cocaine hydrochloride. When the cocaine administration was completed, researchers blinded to the study groups observed the mice in terms of seizures and death for a further 30 min. Results In the cocaine + quetiapine group, the mean +/- SE time to the first seizure was 10.80 +/- 2.27 min and seizure activity was detected in 18 mice (72%) by the end of the 30 min. In the cocaine + aripiprazole group, the mean +/- SE time to the first seizure was 18.10 +/- 1.94 min and seizure activity was detected in 15 mice (60%) by the end of the 30 min. When compared with the control group, there was a significant difference between the cocaine + quetiapine and cocaine + aripiprazole groups in terms of seizure activity. Survival time was increased in the cocaine + aripiprazole group compared with the control and cocaine + quetiapine groups. Conclusion Quetiapine and aripiprazole pre-treatment reduced seizure activity and delayed the onset of seizures compared with the control group.