Feeding behavior in dopamine-deficient mice

Mice that cannot make dopamine (DA), a condition caused by the selective inactivation of tyrosine hydroxylase in dopaminergic neurons, are born normal but gradually become hypoactive and hypophagic, and die at 3 weeks of age. We characterized the feeding and locomotor responses of these DA-deficient (DA−/−) mice to 3,4-dihyroxy-l-phenylalanine (l-DOPA) to investigate the relationship between brain DA levels and these complex behaviors. Daily administration of l-DOPA to DA−/− mice stimulated locomotor activity that lasted 6 to 9 hr; during that time the mice consumed most of their daily food and water. The minimal dose of l-DOPA that was sufficient to elicit normal feeding behavior in the DA−/− mice also restored their striatal DA to 9.1% of that in the wild-type (WT) mice at 3 hr; then DA content declined to <1% of WT levels by 24 hr. This dose of l-DOPA induced locomotor activity that exceeded that of treated WT mice by 5- to 7-fold, suggesting that DA−/− mice are supersensitive to DA. Unexpectedly, DA−/− mice manifested a second wave of activity 24 to 48 hr after l-DOPA treatment that was equivalent in magnitude to that of WT mice and independent of DA receptor activation. The DA−/− mice approached, sniffed, and chewed food during this second period of activity, but they ate <10% of that required for sustenance. Therefore, DA−/− mice can execute behaviors necessary to seek and ingest food, but they do not eat enough to survive.