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Cerebral DARPP‐32 expression after methylphenidate administration in young and adult rats
Author(s) -
Souza Renan P.,
Soares Eliane C.,
Rosa Daniela V.F.,
Souza Bruno R.,
Gomes Karin M.,
Valvassori Samira S.,
Réus Gislaine Z.,
Inácio Cecília G.,
Martins Márcio R.,
Gomez Marcus V.,
Quevedo João,
RomanoSilva Marco A.
Publication year - 2009
Publication title -
international journal of developmental neuroscience
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.761
H-Index - 88
eISSN - 1873-474X
pISSN - 0736-5748
DOI - 10.1016/j.ijdevneu.2008.11.001
Subject(s) - methylphenidate , hippocampus , dopamine , dopaminergic , prefrontal cortex , striatum , dopamine transporter , hippocampal formation , neuroscience , medicine , pharmacology , psychology , endocrinology , attention deficit hyperactivity disorder , psychiatry , cognition
Dopamine may alter the phosphorylation state of DARPP‐32 that plays a central role in the dopaminergic neurons biology. Studies have shown that DARPP‐32/protein phosphatase 1 cascade is a major target for psychostimulants drugs. Methylphenidate is a psychostimulant that acts blocking the dopamine transporter has been used as an effective treatment for Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. We investigated if methylphenidate could alter DARPP‐32 expression in five brain regions (striatum, hippocampus, prefrontal cortex, cortex and cerebellum) in young and adult rats. Our results showed that methylphenidate treatment is able to alter DARPP‐32 expression in rat brain. Acute methylphenidate treatment has reduced hippocampal DARPP‐32 protein levels in old rats, while chronic methylphenidate treatment has decreased them in old rat hippocampus and young rat cerebellum. It was found an increased cortical expression after chronic methylphenidate administration in old rats. Our results provide the first experimental demonstration that methylphenidate induces changes in total DARPP‐32 expression that are posology‐ and age‐related in some rat brain areas, although further studies are needed to shed more light on the mechanisms behind these findings.