Genetic influence on the regulation of beta adrenergic receptors in mice

The regulation of beta adrenergic receptors was investigated in inbred mouse strains in which previous studies revealed differences in the regulation of dopamine receptors. The density of beta adrenergic receptors in the cerebral cortex of BALB/J mice was about one-third of that in CBA/J and C57BL/6J mice. Strain differences in the binding of [125I]iodohydroxypindolol to beta adrenergic receptors were due to changes in the density of beta-1 adrenergic receptors. Chronic administration of propranolol did not result in an increase in the density of beta adrenergic receptors receptors in cortices of C57BL/6J and BALB/cJ mice were observed. In contrast, pretreatment with 6-hydroxydopamine resulted in increases in the density of beta adrenergic receptors in the cerebral cortex of all three strains. Analysis of the effects of these treatments on the subtypes of beta adrenergic receptors revealed that the changes were restricted to changes in the density of beta-1 receptors. The failure to observe a response to propranolol in CBA/J mice expands the extent of deficits reported previously in this strain for striatal dopamine receptor supersensitivity after chronic treatment with haloperidol (Severson et al., Brain Res. 210: 201-215, 1981). CBA/J mice may be a useful model for genetic analysis of mechanisms for the control of receptor sensitivity and to investigate the impairments of the regulation of catecholaminergic receptors observed in aged rodents.