Back to Search
Start Over
Alcohol dependence is associated with blunted dopamine transmission in the ventral striatum.
- Source :
-
Biological psychiatry [Biol Psychiatry] 2005 Nov 15; Vol. 58 (10), pp. 779-86. Date of Electronic Publication: 2005 Jul 14. - Publication Year :
- 2005
-
Abstract
- Background: A decrease in dopamine type 2 receptors (D2) and mesolimbic dopamine transmission predisposes animals to consume alcohol. This study measured D2 receptors and dopamine transmission in human alcohol-dependent (AD) subjects using positron emission tomography (PET) and [11C]raclopride.<br />Methods: Fifteen AD and 15 healthy control (HC) subjects were scanned before and after a psychostimulant challenge (amphetamine .3 mg/kg intravenous). The outcome measures for baseline D2 receptor availability were binding potential (BP) and the equilibrium partition coefficient (V3''). Amphetamine-induced [11C]raclopride displacement was measured as the difference in V3'' between the two scans.<br />Results: [11C]raclopride BP was significantly reduced by 16.6% in the limbic striatum, 19.2% in the associative striatum, and 21.3% in the sensorimotor striatum in AD subjects compared with HC. The alcohol-dependent subjects showed a blunting of amphetamine-induced dopamine release in the limbic striatum: [11C]raclopride displacement was -5.2% +/- 3.6% in AD subjects compared with -13.0% +/- 8.8% in HC. However, no significant difference in [11C]raclopride displacement was seen in the associative (-4.6% +/- 5.8% in AD subjects vs. -6.7 +/- 5.4% in HC) and sensorimotor (-12.3% +/- 7.3% in AD subjects vs. -13.7 +/- 7.5% in HC) subdivisions of the striatum between the two groups.<br />Conclusions: Alcohol dependence was associated with a decrease in D2 receptors in each striatal subdivision, whereas amphetamine-induced dopamine release was reduced in the limbic striatum only.
- Subjects :
- Adult
Alcoholism diagnostic imaging
Alcoholism physiopathology
Basal Ganglia diagnostic imaging
Basal Ganglia physiopathology
Carbon Radioisotopes
Dextroamphetamine pharmacology
Dopamine physiology
Female
Humans
Limbic System drug effects
Limbic System metabolism
Limbic System physiopathology
Magnetic Resonance Imaging
Male
Middle Aged
Neural Inhibition drug effects
Neural Inhibition physiology
Positron-Emission Tomography
Raclopride
Receptors, Dopamine D2 drug effects
Receptors, Dopamine D2 metabolism
Synaptic Transmission drug effects
Alcoholism diagnosis
Alcoholism metabolism
Basal Ganglia metabolism
Dopamine metabolism
Synaptic Transmission physiology
Subjects
Details
- Language :
- English
- ISSN :
- 0006-3223
- Volume :
- 58
- Issue :
- 10
- Database :
- MEDLINE
- Journal :
- Biological psychiatry
- Publication Type :
- Academic Journal
- Accession number :
- 16018986
- Full Text :
- https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biopsych.2005.04.044