title: Excitation by talipexole, a dopamine D2 agonist, of caudate nucleus neurons activated by nigral stimulation.
abstract: An electrophysiological study using cats anesthetized with alpha-chloralose was performed to elucidate whether or not talipexole (B-HT 920 CL2: 6-allyl-2-amino -5, 6, 7, 8-tetrahydro-4H-thiazolo [4, 5 -d] -azepine-dihydrochroride), a dopamine D2 agonist, acts on postsynaptic dopamine receptors in the caudate nucleus (CN) neurons receiving excitatory input from the pars compacta of substantia nigra (SN). Extracellular neuron activities were recorded in the CN using a glass-insulated silver wire microelectrode attached along a seven-barreled micropipette, each of which was filled with talipexole, quinpirole (dopamine D2 agonist), domperidone (dopamine D2 antagonist), glutamate and 2M NaCl. These drugs were microiontophoretically applied to the immediate vicinity of the target neuron. In the same neurons in which the spikes elicited by the SN stimulation were blocked by microiontophoretically applied domperidone, microiontophoretic application of talipexole and quinpirole induced a dose-dependent increase in spontaneous firing. This increase in firing by talipexole and quinpirole was blocked during simultaneous application of domperidone, although glutamate-induced firing remained unaffected by domperidone. In the CN neurons, in which the SN stimulation-induced spikes were not blocked by domperidone, spontaneous firing was not affected by talipexole or quinpirole. These findings suggest that talipexole activates CN neurons receiving a dopaminergic input from SN via D2 receptors, as does quinpirole.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pharmacology, Faculty of Medicine, Kyoto University, Japan.
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Todo
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Momiyama
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Amano
authors.forename: Y
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Kohno
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Sasa
mesh_terms: D000200:Action Potentials / Q000187:drug effects; D000818:Animals; D001381:Azepines / Q000494:pharmacology*; D002415:Cats; D002421:Caudate Nucleus / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000502:physiology; D004294:Domperidone / Q000494:pharmacology; D015259:Dopamine Agents / Q000494:pharmacology*; D004558:Electric Stimulation; D004873:Ergolines / Q000494:pharmacology; D007478:Iontophoresis; D009474:Neurons / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000502:physiology; D019257:Quinpirole; D013378:Substantia Nigra / Q000502:physiology*
chemical_list: D001381:Azepines; D015259:Dopamine Agents; D004873:Ergolines; D019257:Quinpirole; D004294:Domperidone; C024763:talipexole