BACKGROUND: Phospholipase A(2) (PLA(2)) catalyses the release of free fatty acids used for eicosanoid biosynthesis. We previously reported that calcium-stimulated PLA(2) activity is reduced in the brain of cocaine users and patients with schizophrenia, and have speculated that this is due to dopaminergic hyperactivity in both conditions. METHODS: To investigate these observations under controlled conditions, PLA(2) activity was measured in brain of rats exposed to cocaine and the dopamine receptor antagonist haloperidol. RESULTS: As compared with saline-treated controls, calcium-stimulated PLA(2) activity was reduced (-30%; P<0.01) in the dopamine-rich striatum of animals sacrificed 1 h after chronic (20 mg/kg/day) injection of cocaine, but was normal in haloperidol- (2 mg/kg/day) treated animals, and in the dopamine-poor cortex and cerebellum of animals treated with either drug. CONCLUSION: This confirms and extends our observations in human brain, and further suggests a link between the brain dopaminergic and phospholipid catabolic systems.

Acyltransferases↗