title: Dual effects of L-3,4-dihydroxyphenylalanine on aromatic L-amino acid decarboxylase, dopamine release and motor stimulation in the reserpine-treated rat: evidence that behaviour is dopamine independent.
abstract: The comparative effects of L-3,4-dihydroxphenylalanine (L-DOPA) on dopamine synthesis, release and behaviour were studied in the reserpine-treated rat. Acute administration of L-DOPA (25-200 mg/kg) dose-dependently inhibited the activity of aromatic L-amino acid decarboxylase (AADC) in the substantia nigra and corpus striatum. The antiparkinsonian drugs budipine (10 mg/kg) and amantadine (40 mg/kg) enhanced AADC activity in these regions, and prevented or reversed AADC inhibition by L-DOPA. Dual probe dialysis revealed that low doses of L-DOPA (25-50 mg/kg) dose-dependently stimulated the release of dopamine and 3,4-dihydroxyphenylacetic acid (DOPAC) in nigra and striatum, whilst high doses of L-DOPA (100-200 mg/kg) completely suppressed the release of dopamine, but not DOPAC. Sulpiride (50 microM) administered via the probes antagonized dopamine release in response to 25 mg/kg L-DOPA, but greatly facilitated release by 200 mg/kg L-DOPA. Dopamine release was blocked by the centrally acting AADC inhibitor NSD 1015, but facilitated by the central AADC activator budipine. In behavioural tests L-DOPA (plus benserazide, 50 mg/kg) only reversed akinesia at 200 mg/kg, and not at 25-100 mg/kg. Pretreatment with either NSD 1015 (100 mg/kg) or budipine (10 mg/kg) markedly potentiated the motor stimulant action of a threshold dose of L-DOPA (100 mg/kg). A combination of NSD 1015 (100 mg/kg) and benserazide (50 mg/kg) potentiated L-DOPA behaviour more effectively than either inhibitor alone. NSD 1015-facilitated L-DOPA behaviour was antagonized by sulpiride (100 mg/kg) and not by SCH 23390 (1 mg/kg), whereas budipine-facilitated L-DOPA behaviour was fully antagonized by SCH 23390 and only partially by sulpiride. These results show that behaviourally active doses of L-DOPA in the reserpinized rat are not accompanied by significant increases in extracellular dopamine and are therefore probably not dopamine mediated. We propose that L-DOPA is capable of directly stimulating dopamine D2 and possibly non-dopamine receptors, thereby inhibiting dopamine efflux presynaptically and promoting motor activation postsynaptically. A stimulant action of L-DOPA on motor behaviour, preferentially mediated by D1 > D2 receptors, suggests that L-DOPA may also be capable of yielding a dopamine-like response in the absence of detectable dopamine release. These findings are incorporated into a new model of L-DOPA's actions in the reserpinized rat, and their possible implications for our understanding of L-DOPA in Parkinson's disease are discussed.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pharmacology, School of Pharmacy, London, UK.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Fisher
authors.forename: C S
authors.initials: CS
authors.lastname: Biggs
authors.forename: O
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Eradiri
authors.forename: M S
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Starr
mesh_terms: D015102:3,4-Dihydroxyphenylacetic Acid / Q000378:metabolism; D000818:Animals; D001142:Aromatic-L-Amino-Acid Decarboxylases / Q000378:metabolism*; D004298:Dopamine / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000494:pharmacology; D015259:Dopamine Agents / Q000494:pharmacology*; D007980:Levodopa / Q000494:pharmacology*; D008297:Male; D009043:Motor Activity / Q000187:drug effects*; D051381:Rats; D017208:Rats, Wistar; D012110:Reserpine / Q000494:pharmacology*
chemical_list: D015259:Dopamine Agents; D015102:3,4-Dihydroxyphenylacetic Acid; D007980:Levodopa; D012110:Reserpine; D001142:Aromatic-L-Amino-Acid Decarboxylases; D004298:Dopamine