title: Postnatal development of dopamine D4-like receptors in rat forebrain regions: comparison with D2-like receptors.
abstract: Development of dopamine D4-like receptors in rat caudate-putamen (CPu), nucleus accumbens (NAc), frontal cortex, hippocampus, and entorhinal cortex was assessed at seven points between postnatal days 7 and 60 by computed in vitro receptor autoradiography, and compared with dopamine (DA) D2-like receptors. Density of radioligand binding to both receptor types increased from day 7 to a peak at day 28 in caudate-putamen (D4, 3.3-fold; D2, 4.3-fold) and nucleus accumbens (2.9- and 3.6-fold), then declined by 28%-33% over days 35-60 to adult levels in both brain regions. In hippocampus, frontal and entorhinal cortex, both receptor types increased by 3.8- to 5.8-fold from day 7 to maximal levels at day 35 that remained unchanged to day 60. These findings suggest: (1) D4- and D2-like receptors follow a similar course of development in several cortical, extrapyramidal, and limbic regions of rat forebrain; (2) elimination of excessive receptors of both types occurred in caudate-putamen and nucleus accumbens but not in the other brain regions.
authors.affiliation: Mailman Research Center, McLean Division of Massachusetts General Hospital, Belmont, MA 02178, USA. ftarazi@warren.med.harvard.edu
authors.forename: F I
authors.initials: FI
authors.lastname: Tarazi
authors.forename: E C
authors.initials: EC
authors.lastname: Tomasini
authors.forename: R J
authors.initials: RJ
authors.lastname: Baldessarini
mesh_terms: D000375:Aging / Q000378:metabolism*; D000818:Animals; D000831:Animals, Newborn; D001549:Benzamides / Q000378:metabolism; D018492:Dopamine Antagonists / Q000378:metabolism; D018507:Gene Expression Regulation, Developmental; D008297:Male; D009928:Organ Specificity; D016548:Prosencephalon / Q000254:growth & development / Q000378:metabolism*; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D017448:Receptors, Dopamine D2 / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D050638:Receptors, Dopamine D4
chemical_list: D001549:Benzamides; D018492:Dopamine Antagonists; C493601:Drd4 protein, rat; D017448:Receptors, Dopamine D2; D050638:Receptors, Dopamine D4; C030265:nemonapride