Ontogenetic Development of the Striatal [3H]Spiperone Binding: Regulation by Sodium and Guanine Nucleotide in Rats

Ontogenetic development of specific 3H]spiperone binding to crude synaptic membranes and its regulation by Na+ and GTP was investigated in the rat striatum. (d)-Butaclamol more effectively inhibited 3H]spiperone binding than (l)-butaclamol. The ratio of inhibitory activity of (d)- and (l)-butaclamol for 3H]spiperone binding was not different between 1-, 7-, and 70-day-old animals but eight- to ninefold lower at 18 days of gestation than during the postnatal period. A Scatchard plot of specific binding indicated the presence of two types of binding: low-affinity (KD = 1.51 nM) and high-affinity (KD = 0.09 nM) binding on day 70. Only one component (KD = 0.075 nM) was observed on days 1 and 7 and both types of binding were found on day 15. Bmax gradually increased with age and reached a peak on day 30, followed by a decline on days 70 and 360. Na+, 100 mM, significantly increased specific binding on days 1, 7, 15, and 70. GTP, 50 microM, completely reversed the Na+-induced decrease in IC50 of apomorphine on both days 15 and 70, but not on day 7. It is suggested that receptors could recognize ligand stereospecificity on day 1. The density in dopamine receptors in the striatum reaches a peak on day 30, followed by a decrease on days 70 and 360. In addition, regulation by Na+ and GTP in agonist binding to dopamine receptors seems to become functional between 1 and 2 weeks after birth.