Cadmium exposure disrupts GABA and taurine regulation of prolactin secretion in adult male rats

This work was undertaken to evaluate the possible effects of cadmium exposure on 24 h changes of gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) and taurine median eminence and pituitary contents. Also the possible alterations of the regulatory mechanisms of GABA and taurine on prolactin secretion were evaluated. Adult male rats were given cadmium at a dose of 25 mg/l of cadmium chloride in the drinking water for 30 days. Control age-matched rats received cadmium free water. Metal exposure induced the appearance of a maximal value of prolactin at 08:00 h. In median eminence, cadmium abolished the GABA and taurine maximal values and decreased GABA and taurine mean levels. In the anterior pituitary, cadmium treatment phase advanced 12 h the peak observed in controls at 00:00 h for both amino acids. There was a positive correlation between GABA and taurine contents in median eminence and the anterior pituitary in both control and cadmium-exposed animals. However, the correlation between GABA or/and taurine with prolactin levels disappeared in cadmium-exposed animals. These results suggest that cadmium exposure affects GABA and taurine daily pattern in the median eminence and anterior pituitary, and those changes explain, at least in part, the modification in the regulatory pattern of prolactin secretion.