Figure 8.

Characterizing hyperdopaminergic DAT^cre/+ knockdown mice. (A) Schematic - of a coronal brain slice showing the ventral midbrain dissection (shaded area) used for mRNA determinations (left). Relative mRNA expression (right) of dopamine transporter (DAT), tyrosine hydroxylase (TH), vesicular monoamine transporter 2 (VMAT2) and dopamine D2 receptor (D2R) in DAT^cre/+ and control DAT^+/+ littermates. n= 5 (female DAT^+/+), n=7 (male DAT^+/+), n=5 (female DAT^cre/+), n=7 (male DAT^cre/+). (B) Schematic of a coronal brain slice showing the striatal dissection (left, grey square) used for protein determination (left). Relative DAT expression in DAT^cre/+ compared to DAT^+/+ control mice (right). n= 6 (female DAT^+/+), n= 6 (male DAT^+/+), n=7 (female DAT^cre/+), n=10 (male DAT^cre/+). (C) Photomicrographs of coronal slices showing that DAT immunofluorescence in the striatum is diminished in the DAT^cre/+ mice. (D) Schematic of a coronal slice (left) showing the FSCV recordings sites: NAc core, dorsomedial- and dorsolateral- striatum (grey circles). Representative recordings (middle) of evoked DA release following single (top) or burst (20 Hz, bottom) stimulation (traces) and respective average DA clearance (Tau) and peak DA release (right). Number of animals is indicated above the bars. n=3 (female DAT^+/+), n=6 (male DAT^+/+), n=4 (female DAT^cre/+), n=6 (male DAT^cre/+). *p<0.05, # genotype effect p< 0.001, ⋄ region effect p<0.05. Error bars, ±SEM.