Dopaminergic innervation and binding in the rat cerebellum.

In the present study, we used an antiserum against dopamine (DA), and specific [3H]ligands in order to shed more light on the dopaminergic system of the rat cerebellum. The immunocytochemical approach showed that the entire rat cerebellum is innervated by DA fibers. All cerebellar layers were found to receive a considerable amount of DA afferents but the molecular layer was the most heavily innervated. The analysis of [3H]DA and [3H]spiperone binding showed that in the rat cerebellum there exists DAergic binding with kinetic parameters similar to those reported for the mouse cerebellum. The results of the present study support the existence of a DA system in the rat cerebellum.