Number Of Dopamine D2 Receptors Research Articles

ERK1/2 kinases and dopamine D2 receptors participate in the anticonvulsant effects of a new derivative of benzoylpyridine oxime and valproic acid

Inhibition of the activity of extracellular signal-regulated kinases (ERK1/2) induced by the activation of the dopamine D2 receptor signalling cascade may be a promising pharmacological target. The aim of this work was to study the involvement of ERK1/2 and dopamine D2 receptor in the mechanism of the anticonvulsant action of valproic acid (VA) and a new benzoylpyridine oxime derivative (GIZH-298), which showed antiepileptic activity in different models of epilepsy. We showed that subchronic exposure to maximal electroshock seizures (MES) for 5 days reduced the density of dopamine D2 receptors in the striatum of mice. GIZH-298 counteracted the decrease in the number of dopamine D2 receptors associated with MES and increased the number of ligand binding sites of dopamine D2 receptors in mice without MES. The affinity of dopamine D2 receptors to the ligand was not changed by GIZH-298. MES caused an increase in ERK1/2 and synapsin I phosphorylation in the striatum while GIZH-298, similar to VA, reduced the levels of both phospho-ERK1/2 and phosphosynapsin I after MES, which correlated with the decrease in the intensity of seizure in mice. In addition, GIZH-298 suppressed ERK1/2 phosphorylation in SH-SY5Y human neuroblastoma cells at therapeutic concentrations, while VA inhibited ERK1/2 phosphorylation in vivo but not in vitro. The data obtained expand the understanding of the mechanisms of action of VA and GIZH-298, which involve regulating the activity of ERK1/2 kinases, probably by modulating dopamine D2 receptors in limbic structures, as well as (in the case of GIZH-298) directly inhibiting of the ERK1/2 cascade.

Schizophrenia, amphetamine-induced sensitized state and acute amphetamine exposure all show a common alteration: increased dopamine D2 receptor dimerization

BackgroundAll antipsychotics work via dopamine D2 receptors (D2Rs), suggesting a critical role for D2Rs in psychosis; however, there is little evidence for a change in receptor number or pharmacological nature of D2Rs. Recent data suggest that D2Rs form dimers in-vitro and in-vivo, and we hypothesized that schizophrenia, as well as preclinical models of schizophrenia, would demonstrate altered dimerization of D2Rs, even though the overall number of D2Rs was unaltered.MethodsWe measured the expression of D2Rs dimers and monomers in patients with schizophrenia using Western blots, and then in striatal tissue from rats exhibiting the amphetamine-induced sensitized state (AISS). We further examined the interaction between D2Rs and the dopamine transporter (DAT) by co-immunoprecipitation, and measured the expression of dopamine D2High receptors with ligand binding assays in rat striatum slices with or without acute amphetamine pre-treatment.ResultsWe observed significantly enhanced expression of D2Rs dimers (277.7 ± 33.6%) and decreased expression of D2Rs monomers in post-mortem striatal tissue of schizophrenia patients. We found that amphetamine facilitated D2Rs dimerization in both the striatum of AISS rats and in rat striatal neurons. Furthermore, amphetamine-induced D2Rs dimerization may be associated with the D2R-DAT protein-protein interaction as an interfering peptide that disrupts the D2R-DAT coupling, blocked amphetamine-induced up-regulation of D2Rs dimerization.ConclusionsGiven the fact that amphetamine induces psychosis and that the AISS rat is a widely accepted animal model of psychosis, our data suggest that D2R dimerization may be important in the pathophysiology of schizophrenia and may be a promising new target for novel antipsychotic drugs.

Protective effect of dopamine D2 agonists in cortical neurons via the phosphatidylinositol 3 kinase cascade.

Glutamate, one of the excitatory neurotransmitters, contributes to the neuronal death associated with neurodegenerative diseases, such as Alzheimer's disease and Parkinson's disease, and with ischemia. In Alzheimer's disease brains, there is a decreased number of dopamine D2 receptors, which might cause neuronal dysfunction or death. In the present study, bromocriptine exerted a protective effect against glutamate-induced cytotoxicity in rat cortical neurons. This neuroprotective effect was mediated via D2 receptors, because it was attenuated by domperidone, a D2 dopaminergic receptor antagonist. Another dopamine D2 agonist, quinpirole, also protected cells against glutamate toxicity. D2 agonists protected cells from calcium influx, nitric oxide, and peroxynitrite toxicity, which are thought to be the mediators of glutamate toxicity. The phosphatidylinositol 3 kinase (PI3K) inhibitor (LY294002) inhibited this neuroprotective effect of bromocriptine, in contrast to the mitogen-activated protein kinase kinase (MAPKK) inhibitor (PD98059), which did not counter the protective effect. Furthermore, Akt protein kinase, which is an effector of PI3K, was activated by bromocriptine, and the antiapoptotic protein Bcl-2 was up-regulated by bromocriptine treatment. These results suggest that D2 dopaminergic receptor activation plays an important role in neuroprotection against glutamate cytotoxicity and that the up-regulation of Bcl-2 expression via the PI3K cascade is, at least partially, involved in this effect.

Repeated treatment with the selective kappa opioid agonist U-69593 produces a marked depletion of dopamine D2 receptors.

U-69593, the selective K-opioid agonist, was repeatedly administered in single daily injections (0.32 mg/kg) to male, Sprague-Dawley rats. Two or ten days later, the rats were euthanized and dopamine D1 and D2 receptors were measured using (3H]SCH 23390 or [3H]sulpiride, respectively, in caudate putamen and nucleus accumbens. Two days after the last of three injections, dopamine D2 receptors in the caudate putamen were decreased by approximately 40%, with no change in D1 receptors. Dopamine D2 receptor number had returned to normal by 10 days posttreatment. In contrast, in the nucleus accumbens there was a small, nonsignificant decrease in dopamine D2 receptors 2 days after treatment, but a large increase (65%) after 10 days. In agreement with the changes in D2 receptors, there was a significant downward shift in the locomotor activity curve for the D2 agonist quinpirole after a 2-day withdrawal. There were no differences in either the total amount of dopamine taken up or in the IC50 for cocaine to inhibit dopamine uptake following this treatment, suggesting that the dopamine transporter and presynaptic terminals were intact. The results of these studies demonstrate that repeated administration of a selective K-opioid agonist induces long-term alterations in dopamine D2 receptors. Furthermore, the finding that these changes in receptor number require both repeated injections and a withdrawal time greater than 1 day suggests that these alterations are compensatory in nature.

In Vivo Dopamine Metabolism Is Altered in Iron-Deficient Anemic Rats

Previous studies of dopamine metabolism in iron-deficient rats demonstrated an elevation in extraneuronal levels of dopamine and a depression in the number of dopamine D2receptors; however, the importance of anemia per se and the reversibility of these observations are not completely resolved. The purpose of this study was to determine if in vivo reuptake of caudate dopamine is altered by iron deficiency anemia, if it is reversible with iron therapy, and if anemia per se produced the same effects on dopamine metabolism. Male Sprague-Dawley rats (21-d old) were fed an iron-deficient diet (4 mg Fe/kg diet) and then iron repleted (5 mg iron dextran), or were fed an iron adequate diet (35 mg Fe/kg diet) and then given phenylhydrazine to induce hemolytic anemia. In vivo microdialysis was performed in steady-state conditions both before and after iron or no therapy and was followed by an intraperitoneal injection of a dopamine reuptake blocker (cocaine-HCl 30 mg/kg). Thirty percent higher extracellular dopamine levels in the caudate-putamen were observed in iron-deficient rats compared with control rats, but no differences were observed in tissue levels. Hemolytic anemic and iron-repleted rats had normal extracellular dopamine levels. The response to dopamine reuptake blockade was significantly attenuated in iron-deficient rats compared with control, iron-repleted, or hemolytic anemic rats. These experiments provide evidence that iron deficiency blunts the dopamine reuptake mechanism, that this is a reversible process in postweaning rats, and that anemia per se does not cause the increased extracellular dopamine levels.

Clozapine occupies high levels of dopamine D2 receptors.

An important discrepancy has been noted concerning the number of dopamine D2 receptors which must be occupied in patients by clozapine, in contrast to other antipsychotic drugs, in order to achieve an antipsychotic effect. For example, when D2 receptors are labelled by radioactive raclopride or spiperone congeners in patients, psychosis-controlling doses of all antipsychotic drugs occupy about 70% or more of the D2 receptors in patients. However, equi-effective psychosis-controlling doses of clozapine (approximately 400 mg/day; approximately 70-130 nM in spinal fluid) only occupy between 20% and 50% of the D2 receptors in patients. This discrepancy of a consistently lower occupancy of D2 by psychosis-controlling doses of clozapine may be resolved when one considers that the neuroleptic concentration for half-occupancy of D2 receptors in vitro (i.e. the inhibition constant) depends on the radioligand used to label the receptor. Radioligands with higher tissue/buffer partition coefficients are less displaced by clozapine. This principle applies both in vitro and in vivo. Thus, allowing for this principle, psychosis-controlling doses of clozapine can be shown to occupy over 70% of the brain dopamine D2 receptors in patients, as found with other neuroleptics.

The effect of dopamine D1 receptor stimulation on the up-regulation of histamine H3-receptors following destruction of the ascending dopaminergic neurones.

1. The binding of [3H]-(R)alpha-methylhistamine and [3H]-N alpha-methylhistamine to histamine H3-receptors, [3H]-SCH23390 to dopamine D1-receptors, and [3H]-YM09151-2 to dopamine D2-receptors was investigated by quantitative receptor autoradiography in the rat brain following 6-hydroxydopamine injection into the substantia nigra. 2. The levels of [3H]-(R)alpha-methylhistamine binding sites in the denervated striatum and substantia nigra were significantly higher than those in the contralateral side from 1 week to 12 weeks after nigral lesions. The H3-receptor binding was maximal at 3 weeks after nigral lesions and maintained until 12 weeks. 3. The increased number of histamine H3-receptors was decreased to the level of the contralateral side by chronic treatment with a selective dopamine D1 agonist, SKF38393, but not modified by a selective dopamine D2 agonist, quinpirole. 4. Dopamine D1- and D2-receptors in the striatum were similarly up-regulated after unilateral nigral lesion. On the other hand, the number of dopamine D2-receptors in the substantia nigra was markedly decreased after administration of 6-hydroxydopamine. 5. The treatment with (S)alpha-fluoromethylhistidine increased the H3-receptor binding in both the ipsilateral and contralateral sides. As a result, the magnitude of the ratio of the H3-receptor binding between ipsilateral and contralateral sides was partially attenuated by treatment with (S)-alpha-fluoromethylhistidine. 6. These results strongly suggest that the expression of histamine H3-receptors in the striatum and substantia nigra is influenced through D1-receptors by tonic nigrostriatal dopaminergic inputs.

Increased density of dopamine D2 receptors in the putamen, but not in the caudate nucleus in early Parkinson's disease: a PET study with [ 11C]raclopride

Striatal dopamine D2 receptors were studied, using positron emission tomography (PET), in 10 patients with early Parkinson's disease without any antiparkinsonian medication and in 14 healthy controls. [ 11C]Raclopride was used as ligand and an equilibrium method was applied. The maximum count of receptors ( B max) and their dissociation constant ( K d) were calculated according to the Scatchard principle. In parkinsonian patients, the B max of D2 receptors was increased in the putamen contralateral to the predominant symptoms, as compared to the opposite putamen, by 33% ( p = 0.0008). In the caudate nucleus no significant side to side differences was noted. On comparison with age-matched healthy controls, B max values in the putamen ( p = 0.0012) but not in the caudate nucleus contralateral to the side of predominant clinical symptoms were increased in PD patients. The K d values were unchanged. The difference in putaminal B max values between the opposite hemispheres correlated with the difference in the severity of parkinsonian motor symptoms between the two body sides ( r = 0.69, p = 0.03). The present results show that there is both a relative and absolute increase in the number of dopamine D2 receptors in the putamen, but not in the caudate nucleus in early Parkinson's disease.

Dopamine D2 receptors in the hippocampus and amygdala in Alzheimer's disease

Receptor autoradiography was used to quantify the number of dopamine D2 receptors labeled with [ 125I]epidepride in the medial temporal lobe of seven cases of Alzheimer's disease in comparison to eight cases of neurologically intact controls. The Alzheimer's disease cases showed the greatest losses of D2 receptors in the basolateral nucleus of the amygdala and molecular layer of the dentate gyrus and the smallest differences from controls in the perirhinal region and subiculum. The loss of D2 receptors in the hippocampus and amygdala of cases with Alzheimer's disease in concert with alterations in dopaminergic innervation could contribute to the clinical symptoms of this disorder.

Putative biological mechanisms of the effect of iron deficiency on brain biochemistry and behavior

An animal model of nutritional iron deficiency (ID) is described that demonstrates a reduction of brain nonheme iron. The most prominent feature of ID is the significant and selective diminution of central dopamine neurotransmission resulting from the decreased number of dopamine D2 receptors in the caudate nucleus, nucleus accumbens, pituitary, and in all probability the frontal cortex. The consequences of diminished dopaminergic neurotransmission is a modification of dopamine-dependent behaviors and biochemical reactions, the most important of which is the reduction in learning processes. The role of iron in maintaining the homeostasis of normally functioning dopamine neurons and their involvement in cognitive processes cannot be excluded. An interference with iron metabolism at an early age can result in irreversible damage to developing dopamine neurons, with consequences that may manifest themselves in adult life.

Development of specificity and stereoselectivity of rat brain dopamine receptors

Prenatal exposure to the neuroleptic haloperidol has been reported to produce an enduring decrement in the number of dopamine D2 receptors in rat striatum and a persistent diminution of a dopamine dependent behavior, stereotypy.17 The ontogeny of rat brain dopamine binding sites has been studied in terms of the kinetic properties and phenotypic specificity in rat fetal brain through early postnatal development. Sites showing some properties of the D2 binding site can be found prior to gestational day (GD) 18, can be labeled with [3H]dopamine or [3H]spiroperidol and can he displaced with dopaminergic agonists and antagonists.5 Saturation kinetics for specific [3H]spiroperidol has previously been found to occur on or about GD 18.1.5 It is of interest that the critical period for the prenatal effect of haloperidol to reduce striatal D2 binding sites. CD's 15–18.18 coincides with the period during which dopamine binding sites lack true specificity, but can be labeled with dopaminergic ligands.In these experiments the development of stereoselectivity of brain dopamine binding sites has been examined. When rat mothers were given either the neuroleptic (+)-butaclamol or its therapeutically inactive isomer (−)-butaclamol during the critical period CD's 15–18. the number of [3H]spiroperidol binding sites in striata of offspring was significantly reduced by both stereoisomers. This is in marked contrast to the postnatal treatment effect by a neuroleptic in which upregulation of striatal D2 binding sites occurs only by treatment with the therapeutically active isomer (+)-butaclamol. In vitro studies of the direct effect of the stereoisomers of butaclamol indicate that the recognition sites detected during fetal brain development with [3H]spiroperidol do not distinguish between the isomers of butaclamol. The point at which stereoselectivity is apparent also appears to be the point at which the prenatal neuroleptic effect is no longer operative and the mature response to increase the number of dopamine binding sites occurs.