| Gene Symbol | dopamine |
| Function | Inhibits prolactin secretion |
| Monoamine oxidase (MAO-A and MAO-B) | Located on the outer mitochondrial membrane; converts dopamine to 3,4-dihydroxyphenylacetaldehyde (DOPAL), a highly reactive and toxic intermediate |
| Catechol-O-methyltransferase (COMT) | Converts dopamine to 3-methoxytyramine (3-MT) |
| D1 receptor | Most abundant dopamine receptor in the brain; high expression in striatum, cortex, and limbic system. Activates adenylyl cyclase and increases cAMP. |
| D5 receptor | Lower expression; found in hippocampus, thalamus, and cortex. |
| D2 receptor | High expression in striatum, SNpc, and VTA. Exists in two splice variants: D2S (short, presynaptic autoreceptor) and D2L (long, postsynaptic). Inhibits adenylyl cyclase and decreases cAMP. |
| D3 receptor | Expressed in limbic regions, nucleus-accumbens, and VTA. |
| D4 receptor | Lower expression; enriched in frontal cortex and limbic areas. |
| Origin | Hypothalamic arcuate nucleus → **Target**: Pituitary gland |
| Disease relevance | Disruption by dopamine antagonists causes hyperprolactinemia |
| Associated Diseases | Parkinson's Disease |
| Known Drugs/Compounds | diabetic retinal neurodegeneration, NRF2, lipopolysaccharide, Ginsenoside Rb1 |
| KG Connections | 22 knowledge graph edges |
| Databases | GeneCardsUniProtNCBI GeneHPASTRING |