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Heterogeneous composition of dopamine neurons of the rat A10 region: molecular evidence for diverse signaling properties

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Abstract

The A10 region contains different neurons: dopamine (expressing tyrosine hydroxylase; TH), GABA, glutamate-only (expressing the vesicular glutamate transporter 2; VGluT2), and TH-VGluT2 (coexpressing TH and VGluT2). We used three methods to investigate proteins necessary for the synthesis (aromatic l-amino acid decarboxylase, AADC) or transport (vesicular monoamine transporter; VMAT2 or dopamine transporter; DAT) of dopamine within TH neurons in the A10 region. By in situ hybridization–immunohistochemistry, we found that all TH neurons in the A10 region had AADC, but not all had VMAT2, DAT or D2 receptors (D2R). To determine whether TH-VGluT2 neurons account for TH neurons lacking these dopamine markers, we implemented an anatomical “mirror technique”, and found that not all TH-VGluT2 neurons lacked VMAT2, DAT or D2R. Next, by quantitative RT-PCR of individual micro-dissected TH neurons, we discovered two classes of TH-VGluT2 and three classes of TH-only neurons with different latero-medial distribution. Some of the TH-VGluT2 neurons had both VMAT2 and DAT (TH-VGluT2 Class 1); others lacked detectable levels of both transporters (TH-VGluT2 Class 2). Most of the TH-only neurons contained VMAT2 and DAT (TH-only Class 1), a few had DAT without detectable VMAT2 (TH-only Class 2), and others lacked detectable levels of both transporters (TH-only Class 3). We concluded that (a) the majority of TH neurons lacking DAT are TH-VGluT2 neurons, (b) very few TH-only neurons express DAT without VMAT2, and (c) TH-VGluT2 neurons lacking DAT also lack VMAT2. Thus, the A10 region contains dopamine neurons with differential compartmentalization and unique signaling properties.

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by the Intramural Research Program of the National Institute on Drug Abuse. We thank Bing Liu for her help in processing brain tissue.

Conflict of interest

The authors declare that they do not have any conflicts of interest (financial or otherwise) related to the data presented in this manuscript.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. National Institute On Drug Abuse, Intramural Research Program, Neuronal Networks Section, 251 Bayview Boulevard, Baltimore, MD, 21224, USA

    Xueping Li, Jia Qi, Tsuyoshi Yamaguchi, Hui-Ling Wang & Marisela Morales

  2. Xi’an Medical University, Xi’an, China

    Xueping Li

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  1. Xueping Li
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  2. Jia Qi
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  3. Tsuyoshi Yamaguchi
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  4. Hui-Ling Wang
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  5. Marisela Morales
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Marisela Morales.

Additional information

X. Li and J. Qi contributed equally to this work.

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Li, X., Qi, J., Yamaguchi, T. et al. Heterogeneous composition of dopamine neurons of the rat A10 region: molecular evidence for diverse signaling properties. Brain Struct Funct 218, 1159–1176 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00429-012-0452-z

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00429-012-0452-z

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