title: In vivo regulation of DOPA decarboxylase by dopamine receptors in rat brain.
abstract: To test the hypothesis that dopamine (DA) receptors influence cerebral DOPA-decarboxylase (DDC) activity in vivo, we used HPLC to measure the kinetics of the cerebral uptake and metabolism of [3H]DOPA in carbidopa-treated rats, and in rats also treated acutely with a DA receptor antagonist (flupenthixol, 2 mg/kg, intraperitoneally) or a DA receptor agonist (apomorphine, 200 microg/g, subcutaneously). The unidirectional blood-brain clearance of [3H]DOPA (K1DOPA, 0.030 mL g(-1) min(-1)) increased by 50% after flupenthixol. The magnitudes of the relative DDC activity (k3DOPA) in striatum (0.20 min(-1)), olfactory tubercle (0.11 min(-1)), and hypothalamus (0.15 min(-1)) of carbidopa-treated rats were doubled with flupenthixol, but cortical DDC activity was unaffected (0.02 min(-1)). Apomorphine reduced the magnitude of k3DOPA in striatum by 20%. The rate constant for catabolism of [3H]DA formed in brain (k7', monoamine oxidase [MAO] activity), which ranged from 0.025 min(-1) in striatum to 0.08 min(-1) in hypothalamus of carbidopa-treated rats, globally increased 2- to 4-fold after flupenthixol, and decreased to 0.003 min(-1) in striatum after apomorphine. These in vivo results confirm the claim that acute blockade of DA receptors with flupenthixol stimulates the synthesis of [3H]DA from [3H]DOPA, and that this [3H]DA is subject to accelerated catabolism. Conversely, activation of the DA receptors with apomorphine inhibits DDC activity and DA catabolism.
authors.affiliation: McConnell Brain Imaging Centre, Montreal Neurological Institute, McGill University, Montréal, Canada.
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Cumming
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Ase
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Laliberté
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Kuwabara
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Gjedde
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001058:Apomorphine / Q000494:pharmacology; D001921:Brain / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism*; D002230:Carbidopa / Q000494:pharmacology; D002851:Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid; D004295:Dihydroxyphenylalanine / Q000378:metabolism / Q000493:pharmacokinetics; D004296:Dopa Decarboxylase / Q000378:metabolism*; D015259:Dopamine Agents / Q000494:pharmacology; D018491:Dopamine Agonists / Q000494:pharmacology; D018492:Dopamine Antagonists / Q000494:pharmacology; D005475:Flupenthixol / Q000494:pharmacology; D007700:Kinetics; D008297:Male; D051381:Rats; D017208:Rats, Wistar; D011954:Receptors, Dopamine / Q000502:physiology*
chemical_list: D015259:Dopamine Agents; D018491:Dopamine Agonists; D018492:Dopamine Antagonists; D011954:Receptors, Dopamine; D004295:Dihydroxyphenylalanine; D004296:Dopa Decarboxylase; D005475:Flupenthixol; D002230:Carbidopa; D001058:Apomorphine