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Methamphetamine‐Induced Selective Dopaminergic Neurotoxicity Is Accompanied by an Increase in Striatal Nitrate in the Mouse
Author(s) -
ANDERSON KAREN L.,
ITZHAK YOSSEF
Publication year - 2006
Publication title -
annals of the new york academy of sciences
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.712
H-Index - 248
eISSN - 1749-6632
pISSN - 0077-8923
DOI - 10.1196/annals.1369.021
Subject(s) - neurotoxicity , meth , dopaminergic , methamphetamine , chemistry , dopamine transporter , striatum , pharmacology , dopamine , medicine , toxicity , monomer , organic chemistry , acrylate , polymer
Exposure to high doses of methamphetamine (METH), a major drug of abuse, may cause neuronal damage. Previous studies have implicated the role of peroxynitrite, produced by nitric oxide (NO) and reactive oxygen species, in dopaminergic neurotoxicity produced by METH in mice. The present article was undertaken to investigate if a neurotoxic regimen of METH is associated with changes in tissue levels of nitrate and nitrite, which are the stable products of NO. Administration of METH (5 mg/kg × 3) to Swiss Webster mice resulted in marked depletion of dopamine (DA) and DA transporter (DAT) binding sites but no change in 5‐hydroxytryptamine (5‐HT) and 5‐HT transporter (5‐HTT) binding sites in the striatum, amygdala, frontal cortex, and hippocampus, suggesting that METH causes selective neurotoxicity to DA nerve terminals. The concentration of nitrate in the striatum was increased by about two‐fold after METH administration; however, no changes in nitrate concentration were detected in other brain regions that endured dopaminergic neurotoxicity. These findings suggest that ( a ) a neurotoxic regimen of METH produces selective increase in NO in the striatum, which may generate toxic species such as peroxynitrite, and ( b ) toxins other than NO‐related derivatives may mediate dopaminergic neurotoxicity in the amygdala and frontal cortex.