Striatal D2 and D3 dopamine receptors are involved in mediating the reinforcing properties of natural rewards and drugs. In Parkinson's disease, while D2/3 dopamine agonists alleviate motor symptoms, behavioral addictions and withdrawal syndrome are reported in up to 15% of patients. The origin of such adverse effects is poorly understood but suggests that D2/3 agonists could possess reinforcing properties. We evaluated the reinforcing properties of the widely used D2/3 agonist, Pramipexole (PPX), in normal and parkinsonian rats. Intracerebroventricular injections of 6-OHDA induced a bilateral loss of tyrosine hydroxylase-positive cells in the substantia nigra (-51%) and ventral tegmental area (-31%). The animals were then allowed to self-administer intravenous PPX under fixed ratio and progressive ratio (PR) reinforcement schedules before being tested for extinction of PPX seeking. While parkinsonian were slower than sham rats in acquiring self-administration behavior, they later reached the same level of intake. The reinforcing value of PPX, as assessed during PR and extinction, was moderate in both groups. PPX heightened ∆FosB expression in dorsal striatum of lesioned rats and similar PR results involved different striatal subregions between groups. Altogether, our results show that drug-naïve rats self-administer PPX and that the dopaminergic lesion does not affect its reinforcing effects. While PPX reinforcing value was moderate in most rats, a subset of animals displayed a high number of responses and appeared to be particularly sensitive to this drug. These data suggest that PPX may not be responsible for the reported side-effects but rather call for further investigating the differential vulnerability among individuals.
Keywords: 6-OHDA; D2/3 agonist; Dopamine agonist; Dopamine replacement therapy; Parkinson's disease.
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