The extracellular concentration of dopamine ([DA]e) exhibits circadian oscillations, although the mechanisms underlying this phenomenon are unclear. Through the use of voltammetry in rat brain slices, Ferris et al. showed that, over a 24-hour cycle, the rate of DA reuptake by the DA transporter (DAT) was inversely related to [DA]e. Slices from Dat-knockout mice showed no oscillation in [DA]e, indicating that diurnal variation in [DA]e is governed by the DAT.
References
Ferris, M. J. et al. Dopamine transporters govern diurnal variation in extracellular dopamine tone. Proc. Natl Acad. Sci. USA 111, E2751–E2759 (2014)
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Bray, N. Dopamine tone depends on DAT. Nat Rev Neurosci 15, 495 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1038/nrn3792
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/nrn3792