Establishing diversity in the dopaminergic system

Midbrain dopaminergic neurons (MbDNs) modulate cognitive processes, regulate voluntary movement, and encode reward prediction errors and aversive stimuli. While the degeneration of MbDNs underlies the motor defects in Parkinson’s disease, imbalances in dopamine levels are associated with neuropsychi...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:FEBS letters 2015-12, Vol.589 (24), p.3773-3785
Main Authors: Bodea, Gabriela O., Blaess, Sandra
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Animals
Axonal pathfinding
Differentiation
Dopamine - physiology
Dopaminergic Neurons - physiology
Gene Expression Regulation, Developmental
Humans
Mesencephalon - cytology
Mesencephalon - embryology
Mesencephalon - metabolism
Midbrain
Migration
Neural Stem Cells - physiology
Neurogenesis
Progenitor
Signal Transduction
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Summary:Midbrain dopaminergic neurons (MbDNs) modulate cognitive processes, regulate voluntary movement, and encode reward prediction errors and aversive stimuli. While the degeneration of MbDNs underlies the motor defects in Parkinson’s disease, imbalances in dopamine levels are associated with neuropsychiatric disorders such as depression, schizophrenia and substance abuse. In recent years, progress has been made in understanding how MbDNs, which constitute a relatively small neuronal population in the brain, can contribute to such diverse functions and dysfunctions. In particular, important insights have been gained regarding the distinct molecular, neurochemical and network properties of MbDNs. How this diversity of MbDNs is established during brain development is only starting to be unraveled. In this review, we summarize the current knowledge on the diversity in MbDN progenitors and differentiated MbDNs in the developing rodent brain. We discuss the signaling pathways, transcription factors and transmembrane receptors that contribute to setting up these diverse MbDN subpopulations. A better insight into the processes that establish diversity in MbDNs will ultimately improve the understanding of the architecture and function of the dopaminergic system in the adult brain.
ISSN:0014-5793
1873-3468
DOI:10.1016/j.febslet.2015.09.016