AUTHOR=Wang Yuhan , Zhou Fu-Ming TITLE=Striatal But Not Extrastriatal Dopamine Receptors Are Critical to Dopaminergic Motor Stimulation JOURNAL=Frontiers in Pharmacology VOLUME=8 YEAR=2017 URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/pharmacology/articles/10.3389/fphar.2017.00935 DOI=10.3389/fphar.2017.00935 ISSN=1663-9812 ABSTRACT=
Dopamine (DA) is required for motor function in vertebrate animals including humans. The striatum, a key motor control center, receives a dense DA innervation and express high levels of DA D1 receptors (D1Rs) and D2 receptors (D2Rs). Other brain areas involved in motor function such as the globus pallidus external segment (GPe) and the substantia nigra pars reticulata (SNr) and the motor cortex (MC) also receive DA innervation and express DA receptors. Thus, the relative contribution of the striatal and extrastriatal DA systems to the motor function has been an important question critical for understanding the functional operation of the motor control circuits and also for therapeutic targeting. We have now experimentally addressed this question in the transcription factor Pitx3 null mutant (Pitx3Null) mice that have an autogenic and parkinsonian-like striatal DA denervation and hence supersensitive motor response to DA stimulation. Using DA agonist unilateral microinjection-induced rotation as a reliable readout of motor stimulation, our results show that