Striatal [11C]dihydrotetrabenazine and [11C]methylphenidate binding in Tourette syndrome.

ABSTRACT:

Objective

Tourette syndrome (TS) is a common neurodevelopmental disorder marked by tics and behavioral comorbidities. Clinical pharmacology suggests that dopaminergic signaling abnormalities are part of the pathophysiology of TS. Prior molecular imaging studies of nigrostriatal dopaminergic terminal markers report conflicting results. Our goal was to characterize the distribution of nigrostriatal dopaminergic terminals in subjects with TS.

Methods

Thirty-three adult subjects with TS were studied with PET using [11C]dihydrotetrabenazine (DTBZ), a ligand for the type 2 vesicular monoamine transporter, and with [11C] methylphenidate (MP), a ligand for the plasmalemmal dopamine transporter. Subjects were characterized with standard rating instruments for tic severity, obsessive-

SUBMITTER: Albin RL 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2677509 | biostudies-literature | 2009 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature