Posted by mtdewcmu on April 14, 2011, at 13:18:20
Does anyone know anything about this? This looks potentially important:
1. Neurosci Lett. 2011 Jan 20;488(2):154-7. Epub 2010 Nov 13.
Melatonin attenuates the amphetamine-induced decrease in vesicular monoamine
transporter-2 expression in postnatal rat striatum.Mukda S, Vimolratana O, Govitrapong P.
Research Center for Neuroscience, Institute of Molecular Biosciences, Mahidol
University, Salaya, Nakornpathom 73170, Thailand.The vesicular monoamine transporter-2 (VMAT-2) is responsible for packaging
intraneuronal dopamine into synaptic vesicles in preparation for synaptic release
and is a critical regulator of cytoplasmic dopamine levels and dopaminergic
function. It has long been recognized that VMAT-2 is also a critical mediator of
amphetamine-induced dopamine release. Amphetamine-induced lesions during
development have the potential to produce numerous permanent abnormalities in
neural circuitry and function. Therefore, in the present study, we investigated
the effects of amphetamine on the levels of VMAT-2, α-synuclein and
phosphorylated tyrosine hydroxylase in the striatum of neonatal rats. We found
that chronic amphetamine administration in postnatal rats produces dopaminergic
deficits in the striatum, including decreases in the levels of VMAT-2 and
phosphorylated tyrosine hydroxylase. In addition, an increase in α-synuclein
expression was observed in the striatum of postnatal rats following chronic
amphetamine treatment. Furthermore, we identified a role of (10mg/kg) melatonin,
a methoxyindole released from the pineal gland, in attenuating the detrimental
effects of amphetamine on dopaminergic neurons.
PMID: 21078367 [PubMed - in process]
poster:mtdewcmu
thread:982815
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20110406/msgs/982815.html