The five types of dopamine receptors are found in differing concentration throughout various parts of the brain, each displaying differing affinities for dopamine itself and for various drugs and other agents (Table 4-2; also see Jenner). The D1 and D2 receptors are highly concentrated in the striatum and are the ones most often implicated in diseases of the basal ganglia; D3 in the nucleus accumbens, D4 in the frontal cortex and certain limbic structures, and D5 in the hippocampus and limbic system. In the striatum, the effects of dopamine act as a class of “D1-like” (D1 and D5 subtypes) and “D2-like” (D2, D3, and D4 subtypes) receptors. Activation of the D1 class stimulates adenyl cyclase, whereas D2 receptor binding inhibits this enzyme. Whether dopamine functions in an excitatory or inhibitory manner at a particular synapse is determined by the local receptor. As mentioned earlier, excitatory D1 receptors predominate on the small spiny putaminal neurons that are the origin of the direct striatopallidal output pathway, whereas D2 receptors mediate the inhibitory influence of dopamine on the indirect striatopallidal output, as indicated in Fig. 4-4.
Some of the clinical and pharmacologic effects of dopamine are made clear by considering both the anatomic sites of various receptors and their physiologic effects. For example, it appears that drug-induced parkinsonian syndromes and tardive dyskinesias (described further on) are prone to occur when drugs are administered that competitively bind to the D2 receptor, but that the newer antipsychosis drugs, which produce fewer of these effects, have a stronger affinity for the D4 receptor. However, the situation is actually far more complex, in part because of the synergistic activities of D1 and D2 receptors, each potentiating the other at some sites of convergence, and the presence on the presynaptic terminals of nigrostriatal neurons of D2 receptors, which inhibit dopamine synthesis and release.
In contrast to the almost instantaneous actions of glutamate and its antagonist, GABA, the monoamines may have more protracted effects, lasting for seconds or up to several hours. Dopamine and related neurotransmitters therefore have a slower influence through the “second messenger” cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP), which, in turn, controls the phosphorylation or dephosphorylation of numerous intraneuronal G-proteins. These intracellular effects have been summarized by Greengard.
The effects of certain drugs, some no longer in use, are also best comprehended by understanding the manner in which they alter neurotransmitter function. Several drugs—namely reserpine, the phenothiazines, and the butyrophenones (notably haloperidol)—induce prominent parkinsonian syndromes in humans. Reserpine, for example, depletes the striatum and other parts of the brain of dopamine; haloperidol and the phenothiazines work by a different mechanism, probably by blocking dopamine receptors within the striatum.