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Neuroanatomy

A split (mid)brain for dopamine

Nature Reviews Neuroscience volume 9, page 326 (2008)Cite this article

Dopamine pathways in the brain are generally divided into the well-characterized mesostriatal system, which originates in the substantia nigra pars compacta (SNc) and projects to the dorsal striatum, and the mesocorticolimbic system, which starts in the ventral tegmental area (VTA) and projects to the frontal cortex and limbic areas including the amygdala and the nucleus accumbens (NAc). By retrogradely tracing mesocorticolimbic dopamine neurons, the authors established that dopamine projections in the medial prefrontal cortex, the basolateral amygdala and the core and medial shell of the NAc originate in the medial posterior part of the VTA, whereas dopamine projections to the lateral shell of the NAc originate in the more lateral portions of the VTA and the medial part of the SNc.

Next, the authors characterized the molecular signatures of mesocorticolimbic neurons, looking particularly at genes that encode proteins that are involved in dopamine synthesis (tyrosine hydroxylase; TH), packaging (vesicular monoamine transporter 2; VMAT2) and reuptake (dopamine transporter; DAT). Again, two patterns emerged: dopamine projections originating in the medial posterior VTA had low DAT mRNA and protein levels relative to their levels of TH and VMAT2, whereas dopamine neurons running from the lateral VTA to the NAc lateral shell had higher DAT expression (as did mesostriatal neurons).

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ORIGINAL RESEARCH PAPER

  1. Lammel, S. et al. Unique properties of mesoprefrontal neurons within a dual mesocorticolimbic dopamine system. Neuron 57, 760–773 (2008)

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Authors
  1. Leonie Welberg
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Welberg, L. A split (mid)brain for dopamine. Nat Rev Neurosci 9, 326 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1038/nrn2381

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/nrn2381

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