Dopamine D2/3-receptor availability and its association with autonomous motivation to exercise in older adults: An exploratory [¹¹C]-raclopride study.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Autonomous motivation to exercise occurs when the activity is voluntary and with a perceived inherent satisfaction from the activity itself. It has been suggested that autonomous motivation is related to striatal dopamine D2/3-receptor (D2/3R) availability within the brain. In this study, we hypothesized that D2/3R availability in three striatal regions (nucleus accumbens, caudate nucleus, and putamen) would be positively associated with self-reported autonomous motivation to exercise. We also examined this relationship with additional exploratory analyses across a set of a priori extrastriatal regions of interest (ROI).

Methods

Our sample comprised 49 older adults (28 females) between 64 and 78 years of age. The D2/3R availability was quantified from posit

SUBMITTER: Simonsson E 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9691986 | biostudies-literature | 2022

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature