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Dopamine receptor mapping with PET imaging in Parkinson’s disease

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Abstract

Parkinson’s disease (PD) is a chronic neurodegenerative disorder characterised pathologically by the loss of dopaminergic neurons in the substantia nigra pars compacta. These neurons project to the striatum, and their loss leads to alterations in the activity of the neural circuits that regulate movement. The striatal output of the circuit related to the control of movement is mediated by two pathways: the direct striatal pathway, which is mediated through facilitation of D1 receptors, and the indirect striatal pathway, mediated through D2 receptors. Positron emission tomography (PET) molecular imaging is a powerful in vivo technique in which using selective dopaminergic radioligands has been employed to investigate the dopaminergic system in humans. In this article we aim to review the role of PET imaging in understanding the postsynaptic dopaminergic mechanisms in PD. PET studies have allowed us to gain important insights into the functions of the dopaminergic system, the mechanisms of drug-induced motor and non-motor complications, and the placebo effect in PD.

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Abbreviations

CNS:

Central nervous system

DAT:

Dopamine transporter

L-dopa:

L-3,4-dihydroxyphenylalanine

PET:

Positron emission tomography

UPDRS:

Unified Parkinson’s disease rating scale

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The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Neurodegeneration Imaging Group, Department of Clinical Neuroscience, King’s College London, London, SE5 8AF, UK

    Flavia Niccolini & Marios Politis

  2. Division of Brain Sciences, Department of Medicine, Imperial College London, London, UK

    Flavia Niccolini, Paul Su & Marios Politis

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  1. Flavia Niccolini
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  2. Paul Su
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  3. Marios Politis
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Correspondence to Marios Politis.

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Niccolini, F., Su, P. & Politis, M. Dopamine receptor mapping with PET imaging in Parkinson’s disease. J Neurol 261, 2251–2263 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00415-014-7302-2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00415-014-7302-2

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