However, dopamine biosynthesis does not only occur in neurons, but also in peripheral tissues. Dopamine receptors have been described in the kidney, pancreas, lungs, and in numerous blood vessels outside the central nervous system. This article gives a brief overview of the importance of dopamine acting as a neurotransmitter and peripheral hormone.
Special consideration is given to: i biochemical disturbances occurring in both brain and kidneys in various diseases and ii current therapy correcting disturbances in dopamine systems. Catecholamines are made in the adrenal glands — small hormone production factories that sit on top of the kidneys. These hormones get released into the bloodstream when the body is physically or mentally stressed.
They cause biochemical changes that activate the so-called fight-or-flight response. Dopamine has many functions outside the brain. It acts as a vasodilator , helping to widen blood vessels.
It helps to increase urine output in the kidneys, and in the pancreas it reduces the production of insulin, a hormone involved in blood sugar regulation. In the immune system, dopamine dampens inflammation, normally helping to prevent the sort of runaway immune response seen in autoimmune diseases. Dopamine receptors are proteins found in the brain and nerves throughout the body. The receptor and neurotransmitter work like a lock and key.
The dopamine attaches to the dopamine receptor, delivering its chemical message by causing changes in the receiving nerve cell. Dopamine receptors play an important role in many neurological processes, including movement coordination and fine motor control, pleasure, cognition, memory, and learning. Abnormally functioning dopamine receptors may play a role in several neurological and psychiatric illnesses.
Therefore, dopamine receptors are a natural target for many drug therapies. Some street drugs, including heroin, cocaine, and methamphetamine , also act on dopamine receptors in the brain. Dopamine creates feelings of pleasure.
To regain these pleasurable effects, a user must increase the amount of drug taken. There are a few classes of medication that work on the dopamine pathways of the brain to treat disease.
They include:. Levodopa, a precursor chemical to dopamine, helps to boost dopamine levels in the brain. Once levodopa reaches the brain, it transforms into dopamine. Dopamine Agonists Dopamine agonists are a class of drugs that bind to and activate dopamine receptors in the brain.
They mimic the action of naturally-occurring dopamine in the brain, causing the neurons to react as they would to dopamine. RLS is a sleep disorder that causes an unpleasant tingling or twitching sensation in the legs when lying or sitting down, mostly at night, resulting in an irresistible urge to move them, and in insomnia.
Dopamine agonists also are sometimes used to treat depression and fibromyalgia. Serious side effects associated with dopamine agonists include low blood pressure, dizziness when standing up, hallucinations, and impulse control disorders, such as pathological gambling, compulsive eating, and hypersexuality.
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