Mechanisms underlying the vulnerability of striatal dopaminergic neurons caused by stress-related mental disorders.

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In order to establish the functional assay system for dopaminergic terminals in striatal synaptosomes, we use the fluorescent compound 4-(4-diethylaminostyryl)-N-methylpyridinium iodide (ASP+). ASP+ has been used to measure the biophysical properties of norepinephrine transporter (NET), serotonin transporter (SERT) or dopamine transporter (DAT). In this study, we have investigated whether ASP+ can be used as a fluorescent substrate to monitor DAT function in mouse striatal synaptosomes. We confirmed the specificity of ASP+ uptake for the NET, SERT and DAT using several inhibitors of monoamine transporters in synaptosomes prepared from the striatum and frontal cortex. These results suggest that the ASP+ method might be used to evaluate for the function of dopaminergic terminals in striatal synaptosomes.