Adenosine A1 receptor-dopamine D1 receptor interaction in the rat limbic system: modulation of dopamine D1 receptor antagonist binding sites.

Antagonistic interactions between adenosine A2a and dopamine D2 receptors and between adenosine A1 and dopamine D1 receptors have been previously found in the basal ganglia. Those interactions have been proposed to be key mechanisms of action responsible for the motor depressant effects of adenosine agonists and the motor activating effects of adenosine antagonists, like caffeine. By using quantitative receptor autoradiography, the selective adenosine A1 receptor agonist N6-cyclopentyladenosine was found to decrease the affinity of dopamine D1 receptors for the specific D1 antagonist [(125)I]SCH 23982 in both the nucleus accumbens and the medial prefrontal cortex of the rat brain. The present results suggest that dopamine neurotransmission, through an A1-D1 interaction, might also he involved in the behavioural effects of adenosine agonists and antagonists not related to motor activity, like the sedative-hypnogenic properties of adenosine analogues and the psychostimulant effects of caffeine.