Abstract
1. Male Swiss Webster mice were administered a series of amphetamine injections preceded by either saline or L-DOPA. 2. This injection regimen was performed for either one, two or three consecutive weeks and neurotoxic effects of the drugs were determined one week later. 3. Amphetamine treatment for two weeks produced a greater striata-dopaminergic lesion that treatment for only one week. Three weeks of treatment did not exacerbate the lesion, indicating that the damage had reached maximal levels. 4. L-DOPA pretreatment did not significantly alter any of the toxic effects of the amphetamine. Therefore, some dopaminergic neurons may be resistant to the toxic effects of amphetamine.
MeSH terms
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3,4-Dihydroxyphenylacetic Acid / metabolism
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Animals
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Benserazide / pharmacology
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Brain / drug effects
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Brain / metabolism*
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Corpus Striatum / drug effects
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Corpus Striatum / metabolism
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Dextroamphetamine / toxicity*
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Dopamine / metabolism*
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Drug Interactions
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Frontal Lobe / drug effects
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Frontal Lobe / metabolism
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Homovanillic Acid / metabolism
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Hypothalamus / drug effects
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Hypothalamus / metabolism
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Levodopa / toxicity*
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Male
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Mice
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Neurons / drug effects
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Neurons / metabolism
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Neurotoxins / toxicity*
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Organ Specificity
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Serotonin / metabolism*
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Time Factors
Substances
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Neurotoxins
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3,4-Dihydroxyphenylacetic Acid
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Serotonin
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Levodopa
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Benserazide
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Dextroamphetamine
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Dopamine
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Homovanillic Acid