Neuropharmacology of emesis in relation to clinical response

5-HT3 receptor antagonists such as ondansetron, granisetron, ICS205-930 and zacopride are highly effective in the ferret, cat or dog to prevent emesis caused by cisplatin and other chemotherapeutic agents, and radiation treatment. The anti-emetic effects may be mediated centrally in the area postrema and associated structures of the emetic reflex such as the nucleus tractus solitarius, which have a very high density of 5-HT3 receptors. Additional sites of action may be found on the 5-HT3 receptors located on the vagus nerve or enteric neuronal elements in the gastro-intestinal tract. The precise site(s) and mechanism(s) of action of different cytotoxic treatments to induce emesis remains to be determined, but appears to involve a common action on a 5-HT3 system. The 5-HT3 receptor antagonists do not impair normal behaviour and, in particular, fail to affect the extrapyramidal motor system and do not cause sedation. Of potential benefit, the 5-HT3 receptor antagonists have an anxiolytic profile of action in rodent and primate models. The 5-HT3 receptor antagonists are revealed as an important group of drugs to prevent emesis induced by a wide range of cytotoxic treatments.