Dopamine inhibition of glycine release in the rat trigeminal nucleus pars caudalis: possible involvement of trace amine receptors.

Dopamine (DA)-induced pre-synaptic inhibition of glycinergic transmission was studied from substantia gelatinosa (SG) neurons of the trigeminal nucleus pars caudalis using a conventional whole-cell patch clamp technique. The action potential-dependent glycinergic inhibitory post-synaptic currents (IPSCs) were recorded from SG neurons in the presence of 3 mM kynurenic acid and 10 μM 6-imino-3-(4-methoxyphenyl)-1(6H)-pyridazinebutanoic acid HBr (SR95531). In these conditions, bath applied DA (100 μM) reduced the amplitude of glycinergic IPSCs and increased the paired-pulse ratio, suggesting that DA acts pre-synaptically to reduce the probability of glycine release. However, the inhibitory action of DA on glycinergic IPSCs was not blocked by SCH23390 (10 μM) and spiperone (1 μM), selective D(1) - and D(2) -like receptor antagonists, respectively. In addition, either SKF38393 (100 μM), a selective D(1) -like receptor agonist, or quinpirole (100 μM), a selective D(2) -like receptor agonist, had no pre-synaptic effect on glycinergic IPSCs. The results suggest that both D(1) - and D(2) -like receptors are not involved in the DA-induced decrease in glycinergic IPSCs. On the other hand, tyramine (100 μM), one of representative trace amines, reduced the amplitude of glycinergic IPSCs and increased the paired-pulse ratio, suggesting that tyramine acts pre-synaptically to reduce the probability of glycine release. Considering that DA can activate trace amine (TA) receptors and that TA receptors are exclusively expressed on the trigeminal nucleus pars caudalis, DA might act on putative pre-synaptic TA receptors, rather than classical DA receptors, to inhibit glycinergic transmission onto SG neurons of the trigeminal nucleus pars caudalis.