CART (cocaine and amphetamine regulated transcript) peptide functions as both a neurotransmitter and a hormone and is found both in the central nervous system (CNS) and in the periphery. CART peptide in the nucleus accumbens (NAc) has been implicated in the regulation of cocaine-dopamine-mediated locomotion and self-administration, and amphetamine-mediated locomotion and behavior. However, there are no studies on the effect of systemic administration of CART peptide on cocaine and amphetamine-mediated locomotion. In this study, we tested if the systemic administration of CART 55–102 by the intraperitoneal (ip) route has a functional effect on psychostimulant-mediated locomotion in rats as it does when given into the brain. We determined that ip CART 55–102 attenuates psychostimulant-mediated locomotion as it does when administered into the NAc and display a biphasic dose response curve.

Signaling in rat brainstem via Gpr160 is required for the anorexigenic and antidipsogenic actions of cocaine-and amphetamine-regulated transcript peptide