Distribution of free and conjugated dopamine in monkey brain, peripheral tissues and cerebrospinal fluid determined...

The occurrence of free and conjugated dopamine was determined by high-performance liquid chromatography with electrochemical detection in brain areas, peripheral tissues, and CSF from rhesus monkeys. Free norepinephrine, epinephrine, and 3,4-dihydroxyphenylacetic acid were also determined in some tissues. Conjugated dopamine was found to be widely, but not homogeneously, distributed in this species. In the brain, conjugated dopamine was found to account for greater than 10% of the total dopamine present in the frontal cortex (74%), cingulate gyrus (31%), cerebellum (16%), and occipital cortex (11%). Conjugated dopamine accounted for 21% of the total dopamine in the liver, and ranged from 10 to 20% of the total in testicle, kidney and heart. In CSF from both the lateral ventricle and lumbar thecal sac, free dopamine was not reliably detected, but conjugated dopamine was found in all samples tested.