Mechanism and site of action of a dopamine D1 antagonist in the rabbit retina

Abstract

AbstractDopamine D1 antagonists have been shown to alter drastically the spontaneous and light-evoked activity of ganglion cells in the rabbit retina (Jensen & Daw, 1984, 1986). A major target of dopaminergic neurons in mammalian retinas appears to be rod All amacrine cells (Pourcho, 1982; Voigt & Wässle, 1987). In the present study, the following questions were addressed: (1) Do dopamine D1 antagonists alter the activity of ganglion cells through actions primarily on rod All amacrine cells? (2) Are the effects of dopamine D1 antagonists on ganglion cells due to an inhibition of dopamine-stimulated adenylate cyclase activity?Using an isolated, superfused retinal preparation, the ability of several pharmacological agents to counteract the physiological effects of the dopamine D1 antagonist (+)-SCH 23390 on rabbit ganglion cells was examined. The glycine antagonist strychnine abolished the effects of (+)-SCH 23390 on the spontaneous and light-evoked activity of OFF-center ganglion cells, whereas the excitatory amino-acid antagonist kynurenic acid abolished the effects of (+)-SCH 23390 on the spontaneous and light-evoked activity of ON-center ganglion cells. The findings obtained with these antagonists can be explained in terms of the known synaptic connections of All amacrine cells.Both 8-(4-chlorophenylthio) cyclic AMP, a membrane-permeable cAMP analog, and forskolin, an activator of adenylate cyclase, reversed the effects of (+)-SCH 23390 on the spontaneous and light-evoked activity of OFF-center ganglion cells but not ON-center ganglion cells. These findings suggest that the effects of dopamine D1 antagonists on OFF-center ganglion cells are due to an inhibition of dopamine-stimulated adenylate cyclase, with the ensuing lowering of cellular cAMP levels. The effects of dopamine D1 antagonists on ON-center ganglion cells appear, however, to be independent of intracellular cAMP levels.