Two forms of the rat D2 dopamine receptor as revealed by the polymerase chain reaction

We have used the polymerase chain reaction technique (PCR) to clone the cDNA of the D2 dopamine receptor from rat striatal mRNA. Two major PCR products were produced; one product was identical to a previously published rat cDNA, while the other, more abundant product differed only by an 87-nucleotide insert located in the region of the putative third cytoplasmic loop of the D2 receptor. A PCR approach for determining message abundance was used to determine the relative message abundance of the two forms of the D2 receptor in a variety of tissues. Possible implications of the two forms of the D2 receptor for dopamine-mediated signal transduction are discussed.