Animal experiment:

Rats: Galantide is dissolved in 0.9% NaCl. The i.c.v. injection is given to the resident rat immediately after removal of the juvenile, at the end of the first encounter. Control rats receive an equal volume (4 μL) of saline by the same route, at the same infusion rate (1 μL/20 s) and at the same time. A minimum of 10 adult rats are used for each dose level[4]. Mice: Galantide stock solution is prepared in 0.01% bovine serum albumin in saline. The mice are allocated to 7 groups: Mice administered the vehicle for injection (saline alone), mice administered only caerulein (AP alone), mice administered only galantide (GT alone) or feG (feG alone), mice administered caerulein and galantide (AP+GT) or caerulein and feG (AP+feG) and finally mice that are administered with caerulein, galantide and feG (AP+GT+feG). On the day prior to the AP induction, a blood sample is collected to measure the basal plasma amylase activity[3].

Galantide is a reversible and non-specific galanin receptor antagonist.

Galantide dose dependently (IC50=1.0 nM) antagonizes the galanin-mediated inhibition of the glucose-induced insulin secretion from mouse pancreatic islets. The antagonist is also found to displace 125I-monoiodo-[TyrZ6]galanin from membranes of the insulin producing Rin m 5F cells with an IC50 value of less than 0.1 nM[1].

Intracerebroventricular injection of galanin (5 micrograms/rat) inhibited sexual behavior in experienced male rats--without producing any other locomotor or behavioral deficit-, injection of the galanin antagonist, galantide, by the same route (1 or 2 micrograms/rat) stimulated sexual behavior (improving arousal, motivation and performance indexes) and antagonized the effect of galanin[2]. Galantide ameliorates mild acute pancreatitis (AP). Galantide significantly reduces AP-induced hyperenzymemia by 41-49%[3]. Galantide has been found to improve social memory in 'socialrecognition' test when i.c.v. administered at doses varying from 6-6000 nM[4].

[1]. Lindskog S, et al. The novel high-affinity antagonist, galantide, blocks the galanin-mediatedinhibition of glucose-induced insulin secretion. Eur J Pharmacol. 1992 Jan 14;210(2):183-8. [2]. Benelli A, et al. Galantide stimulates sexual behaviour in male rats. Eur J Pharmacol. 1994 Aug 1;260(2-3):279-82. [3]. Barreto SG, et al. The efficacy of combining feG and galantide in mild caerulein-induced acutepancreatitis in mice. Peptides. 2010 Jun;31(6):1076-82. [4]. Arletti R, et al. Galantide improves social memory in rats. Pharmacol Res. 1997 Apr;35(4):317-9.