Dopamine D2/D3 receptor partial agonists have been suggested as medications for cocaine dependence. The present experiments examined the effect of acute and repeated administration of drugs with varying intrinsic efficacy at D2/D3 receptors on the relative reinforcing strength of cocaine. Use of socially housed cynomolgus monkeys permitted the assessment of whether social status, known to alter...

In the present study, we examine the effects of the treatment with 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 [150 IU/Kg (3.75 μg/Kg) once a day, for 15 days] to non-diabetic and streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats. The results indicate that treatment with 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 had minor effects in non-diabetic rats. The same treatment in streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats, although it did not correct the ...

Emerging evidence from preclinical, clinical and epidemiological studies suggests that vitamin D3 plays vital roles in several diseases in addition to bone disorders. According to new medical evidence, it is being recommended that vitamin D3 intake to be increased for maximal benefits in human health. However, it is necessary to consider potential side effects of increased intake of vitamin D3....

BACKGROUND Malignant melanoma is one of the most aggressive cutaneous tumors in men and women. The risk of developing a malignant melanoma depends on several external factors along with deregulation of mutual interaction of genotype and phenotype. Nowadays, growing attention is focused on the study of the interactions of the active form of vitamin D3 with its receptor and inhibitory effect of v...

Objective(s) Deregulation of the immune system through allied factors and cytokine responses are thought to be important contributors to the pathogenesis of asthma. Vitamin D3 and its nuclear receptor appear to be factors that maybe involved in regulating immune responses during the progression of asthma. The aim of this study was to investigate the association between polymorphisms in intron ...

Adenosine A(2A) and dopamine D(2) receptors have been shown previously to form heteromeric complexes and interact at the level of agonist binding, G protein coupling, and trafficking. Because dopamine D(2) and D(3) receptors show a high degree of sequence homology, A(2A) and D(3) receptors may also interact in a similar manner. The present studies with confocal microscopy showed that A(2A)-yell...

Background Immune modulation by vitamin D3 through dendritic cells (DCs) remains controversial. Human DCs exposed in vitro counteract type-1 T-helper (Th1) differentiation and induce regulatory T cells. However, cutaneous application on mice promotes Th2-driven inflammation resembling atopic dermatitis relying thymic stromal lymphopoietin (TSLP) from keratinocytes T-cell orientation TSLP-stimul...

This experiment examined the influence of U-99194A, a dopamine D3 receptor antagonist, on ethanol's rewarding effect in a place conditioning paradigm. Swiss-Webster mice received six pairings of a tactile stimulus with ethanol (2 g/kg, i.p.), U-99194A (20 mg/kg, i. p.) with ethanol, or U-99194A alone. A different stimulus was paired with saline. During conditioning, ethanol or ethanol/U-99194A ...

Writer's cramp is a task-specific focal hand dystonia characterized by involuntary excessive muscle contractions during writing. Although abnormal striatal dopamine receptor binding has been implicated in the pathophysiology of writer's cramp and other primary dystonias, endogenous dopamine release during task performance has not been previously investigated in writer's cramp. Using positron em...