Role of the thalamus in the bilateral regulation of dopaminergic and GABAergic neurons in the basal ganglia.

In halothane-anaesthetized cats implanted with several push-pull cannulae the release of dopamine from nerve terminals and dendrites of the two nigrostriatal dopaminergic pathways is shown to be asymmetrically or symmetrically regulated bilaterally when dopaminergic or GABAergic drugs are infused into one side of the nigra. Nigrothalamic GABAergic neurons may intervene in the asymmetrical regulation, as sagittal section of the thalamic massa intermedia blocks the contralateral effects induced by dopaminergic drugs. The role of thalamic nuclei in the bilateral regulation of dopamine and GABA release in the caudate nucleus and substantia nigra is further demonstrated by studies showing that (1) electrical stimulation of thalamic motor nuclei induces bilateral asymmetrical changes in dopamine release resembling the changes evoked by unilateral sensory stimuli or stimulation of cerebellar nuclei; (2) electrical stimulation of intralaminar or some midline thalamic nuclei leads to bilateral (or contralateral) symmetrical changes in dopamine release, some of these effects being comparable to those induced by unilateral stimulation of the motor cortex; (3) unilateral lesions of motor or intralaminar thalamic nuclei reverse the changes in GABA release in the contralateral caudate nucleus or substantia nigra induced by unilateral infusion of muscimol into the nigra; and (4) unilateral infusion of GABA into thalamic motor nuclei induces bilateral symmetrical regulation of dopamine release in caudate nuclei by means of presynaptic facilitatory influences.