Studies on the cholinergic and dopaminergic innervation of the neostriatum with the help of intraneostriatal injections of drugs

Abstract

The present study shows that direct chemical stimulation of the brain with relatively low doses (e.g. 100 ng) can be used to disclose the function of specific nerve terminal systems in the CNS. In this study the dopaminergic and cholinergic mechanisms in the neostriatum and their interaction has been evaluated. The results underline the important role the nigro-neostriatal DA neurons play in locomotor performance and in inducing stereotyped activity. The evidence suggest that the neostriatal cholinergic terminals can partly antagonize the behavioral effects of DA receptor stimulation in the neostriatum.