Neuroendocrine responses to administration of serotonin releasing agents or 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT) 1A receptor agonists have been used as an index of serotonin receptor function in patients with depression and other mood disorders. However, the receptor population that mediates these responses has not been clearly identified. We tested the hypothesis that 5-HT1A receptors in the paraventricular nucleus of the hypothalamus (PVN) mediate the release of adrenocorticotropin hormone (ACTH) and oxytocin after administration of a selective 5-HT1A agonist in conscious rats. Low-dose infusion (1 nmol/ 100 nl/side) of the selective 5-HT1A antagonist, WAY100635 (WAY; [O-methyl-3H]-N-(2-(4-(2-methoxyphenyl)-1-piperazinyl) ethyl)-N-(2-pyridinyl)cyclohexanecarboxamidetrihydrochloride), into the PVN blocked the rise in ACTH and oxytocin stimulated by low-dose (30 nmol/kg) i.v. administration of the 5-HT1A agonist, 8-hydroxy-2-(di-n-propylamino)tetralin (8-OH-DPAT; 274 Ϯ 53 versus 70 Ϯ 20 pg/ml, P Ͻ 0.01 for ACTH and 10.7 Ϯ 3.4 versus 4.6 Ϯ 0.7 pg/ml, P Ͻ 0.05 for oxytocin after saline or WAY pretreatment, respectively). WAY did not influence the bradycardic effect of 8-OH-DPAT (Ϫ56 Ϯ 7 versus Ϫ54 Ϯ 6 beats per minute after saline or WAY). 8-OH-DPAT treatment also elicited locomotor activation followed by hind limb abduction and flat body posture. Surprisingly, WAY attenuated some aspects of locomotor activation and reduced the duration of hind limb abduction elicited by the agonist (5.1 Ϯ 0.9 versus 0.3 Ϯ 0.3 min for saline-or WAY-treated rats). These data indicate that 5-HT1A receptor stimulation in the PVN mediates the characteristic neuroendocrine response to serotonin agonist challenge. Moreover, they provide the first evidence that aspects of the behavioral serotonin syndrome are mediated by forebrain hypothalamic receptors.Measurements of hormone release and thermoregulatory responses to acute challenge with serotonergic releasing agents or clinically approved partial 5-HT1A receptor agonists have been used to assess the sensitivity of serotonergic function in patients suffering from various psychological disorders such as depression, obsessive compulsive disorder, or post-traumatic stress (Lesch et al., 1990a(Lesch et al., , 1991Flory et al., 1998;Rinne et al., 2000;Shapira et al., 2000). Administration of serotonin-releasing agents, as well as 5-HT1A receptor agonists, produces a distinct profile of stress hormone release characterized, in part, by increased plasma levels of adrenocorticotropin hormone (ACTH), prolactin, and cortisol in human subjects Sherman, 1984, 1985; Lesch et al., 1990a,b). Depressed patients demonstrate a blunted release of ACTH and cortisol in response to acute administration of partial 5-HT1A receptor agonists (Lesch et al., 1990a;Shapira et al., 2000). Positron emission tomography studies demonstrate reduced 5-HT1A receptor binding in several brain regions in both depressed patients as well as those diagnosed with panic disorder (Sargent et al., 2000;Neumeister et al., 2004). The...