Affiliation:
1. Department of Biomedical and Biotechnological Sciences University of Catania Catania Italy
2. Section of Neuroscience and Cell Biology, Department of Experimental and Clinical Medicine Università Politecnica Delle Marche Ancona Italy
3. Center for Neurobiology of Aging, IRCCS INRCA Ancona Italy
4. Department of Neuroscience Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore Rome Italy
5. Fondazione Policlinico Universitario A. Gemelli IRCCS Rome Italy
6. Oasi Research Institute‐IRCCS Troina Italy
Abstract
AbstractDopamine D3 receptors (D3Rs) modulate neuronal activity in several brain regions including the hippocampus. Although previous studies reported that blocking D3Rs exerts pro‐cognitive effects, their involvement in hippocampal synaptic function and memory in the healthy and aged brain has not been thoroughly investigated. We demonstrated that in adult wild type (WT) mice, D3R pharmacological blockade or genetic deletion as in D3 knock out (KO) mice, converted the weak form of long‐term potentiation (LTP1) into the stronger long‐lasting LTP (LTP2) via the cAMP/PKA pathway, and allowed the formation of long‐term memory. D3R effects were mainly mediated by post‐synaptic mechanisms as their blockade enhanced basal synaptic transmission (BST), AMPAR‐mediated currents, mEPSC amplitude, and the expression of the post‐synaptic proteins PSD‐95, phospho(p)GluA1 and p‐CREB. Consistently, electron microscopy revealed a prevalent expression of D3Rs in post‐synaptic dendrites. Interestingly, with age, D3Rs decreased in axon terminals while maintaining their levels in post‐synaptic dendrites. Indeed, in aged WT mice, blocking D3Rs reversed the impairment of LTP, BST, memory, post‐synaptic protein expression, and PSD length. Notably, aged D3‐KO mice did not exhibit synaptic and memory deficits. In conclusion, we demonstrated the fundamental role of D3Rs in hippocampal synaptic function and memory, and their potential as a therapeutic target to counteract the age‐related hippocampal cognitive decline.