AIMS To describe the prevalence, phenomenology and correlates of 'impulse control disorders' (ICDs) in patients with Parkinson's disease (PD) treated with dopamine replacement therapy (DRT); to assess the strength of the evidence that DRT plays a contributory causal role in these disorders; and to highlight the implications of these disorders for research in the addiction field. METHODS PubMe...

The reinforcing effects of D1-like and D2-like agonists, and their capacity to modify cocaine self-administration, were compared in rats with extensive cocaine self-administration experience. Cocaine (0.01–1.0 mg i.v.) dose-dependently maintained responding under a fixed ratio (FR) 5 schedule of reinforcement, and an inverted U-shaped function characterized the relationship between unit dose an...

Brain dopamine is critically involved in movement control, and its deficiency is the primary cause of motor symptoms in Parkinson disease. Here we report development of an animal model of acute severe dopamine deficiency by using mice lacking the dopamine transporter. In the absence of transporter-mediated recycling mechanisms, dopamine levels become entirely dependent on de novo synthesis. Acu...

IMPORTANCE Parkinson disease is the second most common neurodegenerative disease worldwide. Although no available therapies alter the underlying neurodegenerative process, symptomatic therapies can improve patient quality of life. OBJECTIVE To provide an evidence-based review of the initial pharmacological management of the classic motor symptoms of Parkinson disease; describe management of m...

Recent pharmacological data suggest that a receptor-receptor interaction between adenosine A2 and dopamine D2 receptors in the brain underlies the behavioral effects of adenosine agonists and adenosine antagonists, such as caffeine and theophylline. According to this interaction, stimulation of A2 receptors inhibits and their blockade potentiates the effects of D2 receptor stimulation. Furtherm...

S. Akhondzadeh , A. Safarcherati & H. Amini Psychiatric Research Centre, Roozbeh Hospital, Tehran University of Medical Sciences; Institute of Medicinal Plants, Tehran, Iran. Schizophrenia is a chronic progressive disease and it affects more than 1% of the population. The etiology of schizophrenia remains unknown in a majority of cases (Mohammadi and Akhondzadeh, 2001). There is a large amount ...

Dopamine D2 receptor agonists are commonly used in the control of PRL-secreting adenomas, and the sensitivity of dopamine agonists during long term therapy is exquisite. However, the molecular mechanisms responsible for the maintenance of this cellular sensitivity to dopamine agonists remain poorly understood. In the present study, we examined the agonist-induced regulation of the human D2L rec...

Dopamine, through D2 receptor (D2R), is the major regulator of lactotrope function in the anterior pituitary gland. Both D2R isoforms, long (D2L) and short (D2S), are expressed in lactotropes. Although both isoforms can transduce dopamine signal, they differ in the mechanism that leads to cell response. The administration of D2R agonists, such as cabergoline, is the main pharmacological treatme...

Adenosine A2A receptor (A2AR)-dopamine D2 receptor (D2R) heteromers are key modulators of striatal neuronal function. It has been suggested that the psychostimulant effects of caffeine depend on its ability to block an allosteric modulation within the A2AR-D2R heteromer, by which adenosine decreases the affinity and intrinsic efficacy of dopamine at the D2R. We describe novel unsuspected allost...

Dopamine plays an important role in the regulation of renal sodium excretion. The synthesis of dopamine and the presence of dopamine receptor subtypes (D1A, D1B, as D1-like and D2, and D3 as D2-like) have been shown within the kidney. The activation of D1-like receptors located on the proximal tubules causes inhibition of tubular sodium reabsorption by inhibiting Na,H-exchanger and Na,K-ATPase ...