Disrupted Pattern of D2 Dopamine Receptors in the Temporal Lobe in Schizophrenia

Results: Schizophrenic cases exhibited significantly disrupted patterns of D2 receptors in the perirhinal, superior, and inferior temporal cortices, including disrupted patterns in the modular D2 receptor bands. The schizophrenic cases had reduced concentrations of D2 receptors in the supragranular layers and elevated concentrations of D2 receptors in the granular layer in isocortical regions of the temporal lobe. This disruption does not appear to be due to long-term treatment with antipsychotic drugs and is regionally specific as there were no differences between groups for concentrations or patterns of expression in the hippocampal complex. Conclusions: Blockade of the disrupted distribution of D2 receptors in auditory and auditory-visual association cortices is a likely mechanism for the clinical efficacy of D2 antagonists in reducing hallucinations. The regionally specific, aberrant pattern of D2 receptors may be a symptom of anomalous cortical development in these regions. Arch Gen Psychiatry. 1997;54:649-658