This Article  • Full text  • PDF  • Correction  • Reply to article  • Send to a friend  • Save in My Folder  • Save to citation manager  • Permissions  Citing Articles  • Citation map  • Citing articles on HighWire  • Citing articles on Web of Science (49)  • Contact me when this article is cited  Related Content  • Similar articles in this journal  Topic Collections  • Neuropathology  • Alert me on articles by topic  Social Bookmarking   What's this?

Jean-Antoine Girault, MD, PhD; Paul Greengard, PhD

Arch Neurol. 2004;61:641-644.

The brain contains 2 major groups of dopamine neurons. One is located in the arcuate nucleus of the hypothalamic median eminence and is involved in neuroendocrine regulation. The other, which is the subject of this article, is located in the ventral mesencephalon and projects to the forebrain. Although dopamine neurons are few (<1/100 000 brain neurons), they play an important role in regulating several aspects of basic brain function. They are necessary for the normal tasks of the regions they innervate, including motor behavior, motivation, and working memory. Dopamine neurons are also a central element in the brain reward system that controls the learning of many behaviors. Disappearance of nigrostriatal neurons results in Parkinson disease, whereas blockade of dopamine receptors has therapeutic effects in psychosis. Finally, artificial increase in dopamine transmission is the common mechanism of action of drugs of abuse that leads to addiction. Understanding how dopamine works is a major goal of neurobiology. Much progress has been accomplished in identifying the intracellular signaling pathways that underlie the immediate actions of dopamine and account for its long-term effects on brain properties. Recent findings allow us to identify molecules that may represent future therapeutic targets in neurology and psychiatry.

From the Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale and Université Pierre et Marie Curie Unit 536, Institut du Fer à Moulin, Paris, France (Dr Girault); and the Laboratory of Molecular and Cellular Neuroscience, The Rockefeller University, New York, NY (Dr Greengard).

CiteULike    Connotea    Del.icio.us    Digg    Reddit    Technorati    Twitter     What's this?

THIS ARTICLE HAS BEEN CITED BY OTHER ARTICLES

Presynaptic Regulation of Dopamine Transmission in Schizophrenia
Lyon et al.
Schizophr Bull 2009;0:sbp010v1-sbp010.
ABSTRACT | FULL TEXT  

Specific role of dopamine D1 receptors in spinal network activation and rhythmic movement induction in vertebrates
Lapointe et al.
J. Physiol. 2009;587:1499-1511.
ABSTRACT | FULL TEXT  

Drosophila Vesicular Monoamine Transporter Mutants Can Adapt to Reduced or Eliminated Vesicular Stores of Dopamine and Serotonin
Simon et al.
Genetics 2009;181:525-541.
ABSTRACT | FULL TEXT  

Antipsychotic Drugs: Comparison in Animal Models of Efficacy, Neurotransmitter Regulation, and Neuroprotection
Lieberman et al.
Pharmacol. Rev. 2008;60:358-403.
ABSTRACT | FULL TEXT  

Protein-Protein Interactions and Dopamine D2 Receptor Signaling: A Calcium Connection
Stanwood
Mol. Pharmacol. 2008;74:317-319.
ABSTRACT | FULL TEXT  

Multiple signaling pathways regulate the transcriptional activity of the orphan nuclear receptor NURR1
Sacchetti et al.
Nucleic Acids Res 2006;34:5515-5527.
ABSTRACT | FULL TEXT  

Slow progressive degeneration of nigral dopaminergic neurons in postnatal Engrailed mutant mice
Sgado et al.
Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 2006;103:15242-15247.
ABSTRACT | FULL TEXT  

Apomorphine-induced activation of dopamine receptors modulates FGF-2 expression in astrocytic cultures and promotes survival of dopaminergic neurons
Li et al.
FASEB J. 2006;20:1263-1265.
ABSTRACT | FULL TEXT  

Functional Neuroanatomical Substrates of Altered Reward Processing in Major Depressive Disorder Revealed by a Dopaminergic Probe
Tremblay et al.
Arch Gen Psychiatry 2005;62:1228-1236.
ABSTRACT | FULL TEXT