Experimental epilepsy, psychosis, and dopamine receptor sensitivity
Sato, M.; Hikasa, N.; Otsuki, S.
Biological Psychiatry 14(3): 537-540
1979
ISSN/ISBN: 0006-3223 PMID: 476234 Document Number: 143987
To examine the relationship between experimental models of epilepsy and schizophrenia, electrical amygdaloid kindling was studied in cats under cocaine pretreatment, haloperidol treatment and in the drug-free state. Results suggested that the progress of amygdaloid seizure to generalized convulsions can be suppressed by the dopamine receptor supersensitivity and facilitated by blocking dopamine receptor sites. Together with recent findings the secondary epileptogenic changes may occur in the mesolimbic structures during amygdaloid seizure development in kindled cats, the present findings indicate that psychotic states in some cases may result from localized seizure activity in mesolimbic structures under dopaminergic inhibition.