In the striatum, dopamine D1 receptors are preferentially expressed in striatonigral neurons, and increase the neuronal excitability, leading to the increase in GABAergic inhibitory output to substantia nigra pars reticulata. Such roles of D1 receptors are important for the control of motor functions. In addition, the roles of D1 receptors are implicated in reward, cognition, and drug addiction. Therefore, elucidation of mechanisms for the regulation of dopamine D1 receptor signaling is required to identify therapeutic targets for Parkinson’s disease and drug addiction. D1 receptors are coupled to Gs/olf/adenylyl cyclase/PKA signaling, leading to the phosphorylation of PKA substrates including DARPP-32. Phosphorylated form of DARPP-32 at Thr34 has been shown to inhibit protein phosphatase-1, and thereby controls the phosphorylation states and activity of many downstream physiological effectors. Roles of DARPP-32 and its phosphorylation at Thr34 and other sites in D1 receptor signaling are extensively studied. In addition, functional roles of the non-canonical D1 receptor signaling cascades that coupled to Gq/phospholipase C or Src family kinase become evident. We have recently shown that phosphodiesterases (PDEs), especially PDE10A, play a pivotal role in regulating the tone of D1 receptor signaling relatively to that of D2 receptor signaling. We review the current understanding of molecular mechanisms for the modulation of D1 receptor signaling in the striatum.
Gingival epithelial-like cells (GE-1) were cultured and used to examine the cellular responses of gingival tissues to varying concentrations of titanium (Ti) ions. Titanium ions at concentrations of more than 13 ppm significantly decreased the viability of GE-1 cells and increased LDH release from the cells into the supernatant, but had no significant effect on their caspase 3 activity. These data suggest that a high concentration of Ti ions induced necrosis of the GE-1 cells. Titanium ions at a concentration of 5 ppm significantly increased the level of CCL2 mRNA expression in GE-1 cells exposed to lipopolysaccharide derived from Porphyromonas gingivalis in a synergistic manner. Moreover, the mRNA expression levels of TLR-4 and ICAM-1 in GE-1 cells loaded with Ti ions at 9 ppm were significantly enhanced as compared with those in GE-1 cells without Ti stimulation. We suggest that Ti ions are in part responsible for monocyte infiltration in the oral cavity by elevating the sensitivity of gingival epithelial cells to microorganisms. Taken together, these data indicate that Ti ions may be involved in cytotoxicity and inflammation at the interfaces of dental implants and gingival tissue.
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