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T M Engber

Publications and source records attributed to T M Engber.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

Differential effects of chronic dopamine D1 and D2 receptor agonists on rotational behavior and dopamine receptor binding.

The effects of chronic continuous and intermittent administration of the dopamine D1 receptor agonist SKF 38393 or the D2 receptor agonist quinpirole on rotational behavior and dopamine receptor binding were examined in rats with a unilateral 6-hydroxydopamine lesion of the nigrostriatal pathway. Continuous and intermittent SKF 38393 both decreased the rotational response to subsequent challenge with SKF 38393. Intermittent SKF 38393 increased quinpirole rotation, while continuous SKF 38393 had no effect. Continuous administration of quinpirole did not affect rotation elicited by either SKF 38393 or quinpirole. Intermittent quinpirole, however, increased both SKF 38393- and quinpirole-induced rotation. Autoradiographic techniques were used to measure D1 receptor binding in striatum and substantia nigra pars reticulata and D2 receptor binding in striatum and nucleus accumbens. Intermittent SKF 38393 reduced D1 receptor Bmax and increased D1 Kd in the striatum, while both continuous and intermittent treatment with the D1 agonist decreased D1 binding in the substantia nigra pars reticulata. Intermittent quinpirole decreased D1 receptor Kd in striatum, and continuous quinpirole reduced D1 binding slightly in substantia nigra pars reticulata. Striatal D2 receptor binding was unaffected by treatment with either SKF 38393 or quinpirole. Intermittent SKF 38393 and continuous quinpirole both reversed the lesioned-induced elevation in D2 binding in the nucleus accumbens, while intermittent quinpirole decreased D2 binding in the accumbens on both the intact and denervated sides. Thus, the effects of chronic treatment with D1 and D2 agonists on behavioral responses to D1 and D2 receptor stimulation differed considerably and were dependent on the treatment regimen employed.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

2,3,4,5-Tetrahydro-7,8-dihydroxy-1-phenyl-1H-3-ben↗

Opposite effects of NMDA and AMPA receptor blockade on catalepsy induced by dopamine receptor antagonists.

Excitatory amino acid antagonists have been proposed as novel therapeutic agents for Parkinson's disease due to their ability to reverse akinesia in animal models of this disorder. To further evaluate this therapeutic potential, we examined the effects of a N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) and an alpha-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methylisoxazole-4-propionic acid (AMPA) receptor antagonist on catalepsy produced by dopamine D1 or D2 receptor antagonists in rats. Male Sprague-Dawley rats were injected with dizocilpine (MK-801 0.025, 0.05 or 0.1 mg/kg i.p.), 2,3-dihydroxy-6-nitro-7-sulfamoyl-benzo(f)quinoxaline (NBQX 12.5 mg/kg i.p.) or saline prior to administration of either raclopride (2.5 mg/kg i.p.) or SCH 23390 (0.5 mg/kg i.p.). Catalepsy was evaluated with both grid and bar tests every 20 min for 2.7 h. MK-801 (0.1 mg/kg) reversed the catalepsy produced by either raclopride or SCH 23390 but did not stimulate locomotion when given alone at this dose. At 0.05 mg/kg, MK-801 markedly decreased SCH 23390-induced catalepsy, but did not affect the catalepsy produced by raclopride. In contrast, NBQX increased raclopride-induced catalepsy, but had no effect on catalepsy elicited by SCH 23390. These findings suggest that blockade of NMDA receptors, but not non-NMDA receptors, may reverse the catalepsy produced by dopamine receptor antagonists.

Animals↗

NBQX inhibits AMPA-induced locomotion after injection into the nucleus accumbens.

The role of glutamate receptors in locomotor activity was investigated by examining the ability of 2,3-dihydroxy-6-nitro-7-sulfamoylbenzo(F)quinoxaline (NBQX), a non-NMDA antagonist, to inhibit the stimulation of locomotion produced by the activation of various excitatory amino acid receptors in the nucleus accumbens. NBQX inhibited the stimulation of locomotor activity produced by intra-accumbens alpha-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methylisoxazole-4-propionic acid (AMPA) at doses which had no effect on the locomotion produced by kainate or NMDA. Furthermore, this dose of NBQX had no effect on locomotion when injected alone into this brain region. These data suggest that AMPA receptors in the nucleus accumbens may play a very different role in the control of locomotion than NMDA receptors.

Animals↗

N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor blockade differentially modifies regional cerebral metabolic responses to D1 and D2 dopamine agonists in rats with a unilateral 6-hydroxydopamine lesion.

Dopamine and the excitatory amino acids play important roles in the control of motor behavior by the basal ganglia; elucidating the manner in which these transmitter systems interact may provide new therapeutic approaches to the treatment of movement disorders such as Parkinson's disease. The 2-deoxyglucose autoradiographic technique was used to examine the effect of N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor blockade on regional cerebral metabolic responses to D1 and D2 dopamine receptor stimulation in rats with a unilateral 6-hydroxydopamine lesion of the nigrostriatal pathway. The D1 agonist SKF 38393 (5 mg/kg, i.v.) increased glucose utilization markedly in entopeduncular nucleus and substantia nigra pars reticulata ipsilateral to the lesion, while the D2 agonist quinpirole (1 mg/kg, i.v.) had no effect in these striatal output regions. SKF 38393 and quinpirole reduced 2-deoxyglucose uptake to a similar extent in the lateral habenula, a region which receives afferent input from entopeduncular nucleus; quinpirole also decreased glucose utilization bilaterally in nucleus accumbens. Pretreatment with the noncompetitive N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor antagonist MK-801 (0.1 mg/kg, i.v.), which had little effect on cerebral metabolism by itself, reduced the effect of SKF 38393 in entopeduncular nucleus and substantia nigra pars reticulata and prevented the effect of quinpirole in nucleus accumbens. MK-801 did not alter the SKF 38393-induced reduction in glucose utilization in lateral habenula, but did reduce the effect of quinpirole in this structure. When these drugs were administered in the same manner to a separate group of lesioned animals, MK-801 did not affect rotational behavior elicited by SKF 38393, but completely eliminated contralateral rotation and actually caused some ipsilateral rotation in response to quinpirole. These findings indicate that D1 and D2 receptor-associated brain mechanisms are differentially influenced by N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor stimulation. D2-mediated behavioral and cerebral metabolic responses appear to require concurrent N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor stimulation. On the other hand, the preservation of D1-mediated rotational behavior and reduced lateral habenula glucose metabolism in the presence of MK-801 despite attenuation of the effects of the D1 agonist in entopeduncular nucleus and substantia nigra pars reticulata suggests that D1 receptor-regulated neuronal pathways exhibit varying degrees of sensitivity to N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor blockade.

2,3,4,5-Tetrahydro-7,8-dihydroxy-1-phenyl-1H-3-ben↗

Influence of previous exposure to levodopa on the interaction between dizocilpine and dopamine D1 and D2 agonists in rats with 6-hydroxydopamine-induced lesions.

The potential antiparkinson activity of N-methyl-D-aspartate antagonists was investigated by examining the effects of dizocilpine (MK-801) on rats with 6-hydroxydopamine-induced lesions of the nigrostriatal pathway. MK-801, when administered alone to these animals, elicited ipsilateral rotation, which could be blocked by haloperidol. MK-801, at doses that did not produce rotation when given alone, inhibited the contralateral rotation produced by the D2 receptor agonist quinpirole but had no effect on the rotation induced by the D1 agonist SKF 38393 [(+-)-1-phenyl-2,3,4,5-tetrahydro-(1H)-3-benzazepine-7,8- diolhydrochloride]. However, exposure to levodopa 3 days previously resulted in a subsensitive rotational response to SKF 38393 and this subsensitivity to the D1 agonist was reversed by MK-801. The subsensitive rotational response to SKF 38393 was not evident 7 days after exposure to levodopa and MK-801 had no effect on the response to SKF 38393 at this time. These data suggest that N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor blockade can exert differential effects on dopamine agonist-induced rotational behavior that depend on which dopamine receptor subtype is activated and the previous exposure of the animal to dopamine agonists.

2,3,4,5-Tetrahydro-7,8-dihydroxy-1-phenyl-1H-3-ben↗

Motor response complications and the function of striatal efferent systems.

Motor response complications eventually appear in most patients with advanced Parkinson's disease being treated with levodopa. The interval between onset of parkinsonism and emergence of these adverse events appears independent of the dose or the duration of therapy. Current evidence suggests that "wearing-off" fluctuations largely reflect the loss of normally functioning dopaminergic terminals, although postsynaptic alterations contribute somewhat to the underlying decline in the duration of levodopa's antiparkinsonian action. "On-off" fluctuations and peak-dose dyskinesias, on the other hand, appear to arise mainly as a consequence of postjunctional alterations that follow exposure to nonphysiologic intrasynaptic dopamine fluctuations in patients who have lost the buffering afforded by dopaminergic terminals. Studies in rats with 6-hydroxydopamine lesions indicate that striking functional alterations occur in striatal dopaminoceptive systems as a result of dopaminergic denervation and that levodopa replacement, particularly when given intermittently, fails to normalize these changes. To the extent that similar alterations contribute to the appearance of motor complications, the successful symptomatic therapy of Parkinson's disease may require continuous dopaminergic stimulation, as well as direct pharmacologic targeting of striatal dopaminoceptive systems.

Animals↗

Differential effect of subthalamic nucleus ablation on dopamine D1 and D2 agonist-induced rotation in 6-hydroxydopamine-lesioned rats.

The effect of unilateral subthalamic nucleus ablation on rotation in response to dopamine D1 and D2 agonists was examined in rats with a unilateral 6-OHDA lesion of the nigrostriatal pathway. Four to five weeks following subthalamic nucleus lesion, D2 agonist-induced rotation was reduced in subthalamic nucleus-lesioned rats relative to sham controls, although no such reduction in D1 agonist-induced circling occurred. However, 1-2 weeks following subthalamic nucleus lesion marked reductions occurred in both D1 and D2 agonist-induced rotation in subthalamic nucleus lesioned rats compared to sham controls. These results suggest that the subthalamic nucleus contributes primarily to the expression of D2-mediated motor behaviors, although ablation of the subthalamic nucleus may induce certain time-dependent compensatory mechanisms in other basal ganglia structures which affect D1-mediated actions.

2,3,4,5-Tetrahydro-7,8-dihydroxy-1-phenyl-1H-3-ben↗

Dopaminergic modulation of striatal neuropeptides: differential effects of D1 and D2 receptor stimulation on somatostatin, neuropeptide Y, neurotensin, dynorphin and enkephalin.

Dopaminergic modulation of neuropeptides in rat striatum was investigated by examining the effects of prolonged D1 or D2 receptor stimulation on levels of somatostatin, neuropeptide Y, neurotensin, dynorphin and enkephalin. Rats with a unilateral 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA) lesion of the nigrostriatal pathway were treated for 7 days with either the D1 agonist SKF 38393 (12.5 mg/kg/day) or the D2 agonist quinpirole (1 mg/kg/day). Two regimens of agonist treatment were compared: continuous infusion via osmotic pump implanted i.p. and intermittent (once daily) i.p. injection. Rats were sacrificed 3 h after the last injection and peptide levels measured in the striatum bilaterally by radioimmunoassay; alterations in peptide content were observed primarily in the denervated striatum. In comparison to values from lesioned, vehicle-treated controls, intermittent administration of SKF 38393 reduced somatostatin and neuropeptide Y (down 61% and 57%, respectively), increased neurotensin (up 105%) and dynorphin (up 184%) and had no effect on enkephalin; continuous SKF 38393 decreased neuropeptide Y by 39% but did not alter levels of the other peptides. Continuous quinpirole elevated somatostatin and neuropeptide Y levels (up 43% and 33%, respectively), but reduced the lesion-induced increases in both neurotensin (down 51%) and enkephalin (down 24%) content. Conversely, intermittent quinpirole decreased somatostatin (down 35%) and neuropeptide Y (down 27%), increased neurotensin content by 79% and had no effect on enkephalin. Dynorphin levels were not altered by either continuous or intermittent quinpirole. These findings reveal the complexity of dopaminergic influences on striatal neuropeptides.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

2,3,4,5-Tetrahydro-7,8-dihydroxy-1-phenyl-1H-3-ben↗

Molecular neuroanatomic mechanisms of Parkinson's disease: a proposed therapeutic approach.

Current concepts suggest that parkinsonian bradykinesia is a consequence of an imbalance between striatopallidal and striatonigral output pathways. Dopamine appears to oppositely effect these neurons due to the selective localization of the D1 receptor on striatonigral neurons and the D2 receptor on striatopallidal neurons. Studies measuring changes in gene regulation suggest how selective D1 and D2 dopamine agonist treatments may be used to restore the normal balance between the striatal output pathways.

Basal Ganglia↗

The kappa-opioid receptor agonist spiradoline differentially alters the rotational response to dopamine D1 and D2 agonists.

The effect of the selective kappa-opioid agonist, spiradoline, on rotational behavior induced by a dopamine D1 or D2 agonist was examined in rats with a unilateral 6-hydroxydopamine lesion of the nigrostriatal pathway. Spiradoline reduced the rotational response to the D1 agonist SKF 38393 in a dose-dependent manner. Spiradoline had no effect on the total number of turns elicited by the D2 agonist quinpirole, but did alter the pattern of quinpirole-induced rotation at the highest dose tested. By itself, spiradoline did not have any obvious effects on motor behavior and did not cause rotation in either the ipsilateral or contralateral direction. These data suggest that kappa receptor stimulation, possibly mediated by the endogenous agonist dynorphin under physiological conditions, may function to dampen striatal output through the D1 receptor-regulated striatonigral pathway.

Analgesics↗

Levodopa replacement therapy alters enzyme activities in striatum and neuropeptide content in striatal output regions of 6-hydroxydopamine lesioned rats.

The effects of striatal dopamine denervation and levodopa replacement therapy on neuronal populations in the rat striatum were assessed by measurement of glutamic acid decarboxylase (GAD) and choline acetyltransferase (CAT) activities in the striatum, dynorphin and substance P concentrations in the substantia nigra, and enkephalin concentration in the globus pallidus. Rats with a unilateral 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA) lesion of the nigrostriatal pathway were treated for 21 days with levodopa (100 mg/kg/day, i.p., with 25 mg/kg benserazide) on either an intermittent (b.i.d.) or continuous (osmotic pump infusion) regimen and sacrificed following a three day drug washout. In saline-treated control rats, striatal GAD activity and globus pallidus enkephalin content were elevated and nigral substance P content was reduced ipsilateral to the 6-OHDA lesion. Intermittent levodopa treatment further increased GAD activity, decreased CAT activity, restored substance P to control levels, markedly increased dynorphin content, and had no effect on enkephalin. In contrast, continuous levodopa elevated globus pallidus enkephalin beyond the levels occurring with denervation, but had no effect on any of the other neurochemical measures. These results indicate that striatal neuronal populations are differentially affected by chronic levodopa therapy and by the continuous or intermittent nature of the treatment regimen. With the exception of substance P, levodopa did not reverse the effects of the 6-OHDA lesion but, rather, either exacerbated the lesion-induced changes (e.g. GAD and enkephalin) or altered neurochemical markers which had been unaffected by the lesion (e.g. CAT and dynorphin).(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Animals↗

Prolonged infusion of quinolinic acid into rat striatum as an excitotoxic model of neurodegenerative disease.

The neurotoxic effects of prolonged exposure of rat striatum to quinolinic acid in vivo was evaluated through assays of neurochemical markers for major neuronal populations. Continuous intrastriatal quinolinic acid infusion for 14 days produced a dose-dependent depletion of striatal choline acetyltransferase (ChAT) activity, glutamic acid decarboxylase (GAD) activity, and somatostatin content. ChAT activity was significantly reduced by quinolinic acid at doses of 90, 270, and 540 nmol/day, while GAD activity and somatostatin content were decreased only at doses of 270 and 540 nmol/day. NADPH-diaphorase histochemistry revealed a loss of striatal NADPH-diaphorase neurons as a result of quinolinic acid infusion at a dose of 270 nmol/day. The neurotoxic lesion induced by prolonged quinolinic acid exposure in vivo can be used as a potential model for studying excitotoxic mechanisms in neurodegenerative disease.

Animals↗

Striatal D1 dopamine receptor morphochemistry following continuous or intermittent L-dopa replacement therapy.

Striatal dopamine deafferentation has previously been found to diminish D1 dopamine receptor clustering in association with striatal cyclic AMP-immunoreactive neurons. The administration of the dopamine precursor levodopa (L-DOPA) to animals with unilaterally placed 6-hydroxydopamine nigrostriatal tract lesions now appears to partially restore D1 dopamine receptor morphochemical organization in the deafferented striatum. Differences in the mode of levodopa delivery produced dissimilar D1 recovery patterns. The prodrug, L-DOPA methyl ester, was administered in combination with the peripheral aromatic amino acid decarboxylase inhibitor, benserazide, to achieve consistent plasma levels of the dopamine precursor. Continuous levodopa infusion (100 mg/kg/day, ip) led to a slight dorsomedial reassociation of D1 receptor binding sites with the postsynaptic cyclic AMP transduction system on the deafferented side. In contrast, intermittent levodopa therapy (50 mg/kg, ip, bid) produced a noticeable down regulation of the dopamine receptor system and also contributed to some region-specific recovery of the morphochemical pattern of D1 receptor binding site reaggregation with the postsynaptic cyclic AMP second messenger transduction system. These results suggest that exogenous levodopa replacement therapy desensitizes striatal D1 dopamine receptors. This was substantiated using image analysis of densitometric histograms. The down regulation of D1 receptors is dependent on the levodopa treatment regimen employed. Our findings provide a potential morphological basis for the behavioral desensitization shown previously in response to chronic, intermittent levodopa administration.

Animals↗

D1 and D2 dopamine receptor-regulated gene expression of striatonigral and striatopallidal neurons.

The striatum, which is the major component of the basal ganglia in the brain, is regulated in part by dopaminergic input from the substantia nigra. Severe movement disorders result from the loss of striatal dopamine in patients with Parkinson's disease. Rats with lesions of the nigrostriatal dopamine pathway caused by 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA) serve as a model for Parkinson's disease and show alterations in gene expression in the two major output systems of the striatum to the globus pallidus and substantia nigra. Striatopallidal neurons show a 6-OHDA-induced elevation in their specific expression of messenger RNAs (mRNAs) encoding the D2 dopamine receptor and enkephalin, which is reversed by subsequent continuous treatment with the D2 agonist quinpirole. Conversely, striatonigral neurons show a 6-OHDA-induced reduction in their specific expression of mRNAs encoding the D1 dopamine receptor and substance P, which is reversed by subsequent daily injections of the D1 agonist SKF-38393. This treatment also increases dynorphin mRNA in striatonigral neurons. Thus, the differential effects of dopamine on striatonigral and striatopallidal neurons are mediated by their specific expression of D1 and D2 dopamine receptor subtypes, respectively.

2,3,4,5-Tetrahydro-7,8-dihydroxy-1-phenyl-1H-3-ben↗

Responses of substantia nigra pars reticulata neurons to GABA and SKF 38393 in 6-hydroxydopamine-lesioned rats are differentially affected by continuous and intermittent levodopa administration.

Systemic administration of the selective D1 agonist, SKF 38393, to rats with unilateral 6-hydroxydopamine-induced lesion of the nigrostriatal dopamine pathway induces contralateral turning and reduces firing rates of substantia nigra pars reticulata neurons. Previous studies have shown that chronically administered levodopa diminishes the contralateral turning induced by SKF 38393 in these animals. The present study demonstrates that twice daily injections (45-50 mg/kg, i.p.) of levodopa for 19 days also diminishes the effects of SKF 38393 on substantia nigra pars reticulata activity. Concomitant with this change, chronic levodopa injections reversed the lesion-induced supersensitivity of substantia nigra pars reticulata neurons to iontophoresed GABA. Neither of these effects were produced by the continuous infusion of levodopa (90-100 mg/kg/day, i.p. by osmotic pump) for 19 days, a treatment that produces average daily blood levodopa levels similar to those produced by chronic levodopa injection. These results suggest that large variations in circulating levodopa levels in 6-hydroxydopamine lesioned rats may desensitize the behavioral responses to D1 dopamine agonist administration by down-regulating D1 and GABA receptor-mediated mechanisms of basal ganglia output through the substantia nigra pars reticulata.

2,3,4,5-Tetrahydro-7,8-dihydroxy-1-phenyl-1H-3-ben↗

The effects of striatal lesion on turning behavior and globus pallidus single unit response to dopamine agonist administration.

In normal rats, globus pallidus neurons are excited by the systemic administration of postsynaptically active doses of apomorphine. The role of the striatum in mediating this phenomenon was examined by investigating the effects of apomorphine on neuronal activity in the globus pallidus and on turning behavior in rats with unilateral quinolinic acid lesions of the striatum. The lesion markedly reduced striatal choline acetyltransferase activity and GABA content and significantly attenuated apomorphine's effect on the activity of pallidal neurons. Both the extent of attenuation of the electrophysiological response of pallidal neurons in lesioned animals and the neurotoxin-induced decreases in choline acetyltransferase activity and GABA content in the caudal striatum were correlated with the degree of apomorphine-induced turning. The data indicate that striatopallidal neurons contribute to apomorphine's excitatory effect on the activity of pallidal neurons in normal animals.

Animals↗