Detection of dopamine receptors in homogenates of rat hippocampus and other brain areas.

The binding of [3H]spiperone (24-26 pM) specifically to the dopaminergic (DAergic) D2 site has been investigated in homogenates of rat hippocampus, pineal gland and cerebellum. It was found that specific binding in hippocampal homogenates was heat-labile and for a part pH-sensitive. Like striatal tissue, binding to the dopaminergic D2 site in hippocampal and cerebellar homogenates was greatly reduced by (pre)incubation with the iron chelator o-phenanthroline. The binding characteristics in hippocampus and cerebellum have been compared to those in the striatum. In all tissues tested, low (74-138 times fewer than in striatum) but significant numbers of DAergic D2 sites were found. The DAergic D2 site in the hippocampus, as far as measured in cerebellum and pineal gland exhibited similar binding characteristics to that in the striatum.