Pharmacological analysis of response latency in the hot plate test following whole-body static magnetic field-exposure in the snail Helix pomatia.

PURPOSE: To study the effect of single, 30-min long, whole-body, homogeneous static magnetic field (SMF)-exposure of magnetic induction 147 ± 3 mT on the response latency of the snail Helix pomatia. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The response was investigated using the hot plate test. RESULTS: The effect caused by exposure to SMF was compared to sham-exposure and resulted in significant differences (up to 47.1%, p < 0.001). The response latency depended on the day-night cycle; response latency was higher by 51.2% (p < 0.001) during the night. This trend also held for SMF-exposure (28.6%, p < 0.001). Serotonin alone increased response latency (55.7%, p < 0.001), whereas serotonin antagonist tryptamine decreased it (- 97.8%, p < 0.001). Using naloxone, response latency decreased (- 52.5%, p < 0.001); however both SMF-exposure and serotonin in combination with naloxone rose it back to above the control level (116.9%, p < 0.001 or 150.2%, p < 0.001, respectively). CONCLUSIONS: This study provides evidence that SMF-exposure mediates peripheral thermal nociceptive threshold by affecting the serotonerg as well as the opioiderg system.