ABSTRACT
The role of dopamine (DA) in neurological and psychiatric disorders is well established. In Parkinson’s disease (PD), reduced levels of DA cause some of the cardinal motor symptoms (Riederer et al., 2001), and in schizophrenia, the DA hypothesis has occupied a prominent role for explaining positive symptoms. However, recently it has been recognized that glutamate (Glu) and its various receptors also play an important role in the etiology of schizophrenia. Similarly, based on the excitotoxic hypothesis of striatal neuronal death in Huntington’s disease (HD), the role of Glu receptors is beyond doubt (DiFiglia, 1990). However, the role of DA
10.1 Introduction .................................................................................................. 227 10.2 Basis for DA-Glu Receptor Interactions in the Striatum .............................228 10.3 Electrophysiological Properties of Striatal D1-and
D2-Receptor-Expressing MSNs ................................................................... 229 10.4 DA Modulation of Glutamate Receptor-Mediated Responses in Striatum ... 231
10.4.1 Postsynaptic Modulation................................................................... 231 10.4.2 Presynaptic Modulation of Striatal Glutamatergic Inputs by DA .... 232
10.5 DA-Glu Interactions in Huntington’s Disease ............................................. 232 10.5.1 Human Studies .................................................................................. 233 10.5.2 Animal Studies .................................................................................234
