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Placenta ingestion enhances opiate analgesia in rats.

Kristal, Dr. Mark B. and Thompson, A. C. and Grishkat, H.L. (1985) Placenta ingestion enhances opiate analgesia in rats. [Journal (Paginated)]

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Abstract

Analgesia, produced by either a morphine injection or footshock, was monitored (using a tail-flick test) in nonpregnant female rats. Analgesia was induced within minutes of having the rats eat on of several substances. When the substance eaten was rat placenta, both the morphine- and shock-induced types of analgesia were significantly grater than in controls that ingested other substances (or nothing). When footshock (hind-paw) was administered in conjunction with the opiate antagonist naltrexone, the analgesia produced was attenuated but detectable; in this case, placenta ingestion did not enhance the analgesia, suggesting that the effect of placenta is specific to opiate-mediated analgesia. It is possible that this enhancement of analgesia is one of the principal benefits to mammalian mothers of ingesting placenta and birth fluids (placentophagia) at delivery.

Item Type:Journal (Paginated)
Keywords:opiates, opioids, placentophagia, placenta, amniotic fluid, delivery, rat, POEF, naltrexone, analgesia, pain, tail-flick test, footshock, afterbirth, mammal
Subjects:Neuroscience > Behavioral Neuroscience
ID Code:5764
Deposited By: Kristal, Mark B.
Deposited On:22 Oct 2007 10:45
Last Modified:11 Mar 2011 08:56

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