Sustained behavioral recovery from unilateral nigrostriatal damage produced by the controlled release of dopamine from a silicone polymer pellet placed into the denervated striatum

Abstract

This study was conducted to determine if the behavioral asymmetry associated with unilateral nigrostriatal dopamine (DA) depletion could be alleviated by placing a small DA-releasing silicone polymer matrix pellet into the denervated striatum of rats. Animals that received DA-releasing pellets showed a 50% reduction in apomorphine-induced rotational behavior, and this effect persisted for the 2-month duration of the experiment. The results suggest that the controlled release of DA from an intrastriatal polymer matrix can produce a long-lasting reduction in some of the symptons associated with DA depletion.