Volume 68 Number 6 November 2001	back to contents

Grand Rounds Dopamine Receptors in Hypertension	362-369
Martin J. Bek, M.D.1, Gilbert M. Eisner, M.D.2, Robin A. Felder, Ph.D.3, and Pedro A. Jose, M.D., Ph.D.1
Departments of 1Pediatrics and 2Medicine, Georgetown University Medical Center, Washington, DC, and 3University of Virginia Health Sciences Center, Charlottesville, VA. Address correspondence to Pedro A. Jose, M.D., Ph.D., Vice-Chair of Pediatrics, Professor of Pediatrics and Physiology and Biophysics, Georgetown University Medical Center, 3800 Reservoir Road NW, Washington, DC 20007. Presented at Research Seminar of the Division of Nephrology, Department of Medicine, Mount Sinai School of Medicine, New York, NY on March 10, 2000.

ABSTRACT
There is increased awareness of the role of dopamine in cardiovascular function, renal function and systemic blood pressure regulation. Growing evidence indicates that each of the five dopamine receptor subtypes participates in the regulation of blood pressure by mechanisms distinct for that particular subtype. Some dopamine receptors regulate blood pressure by influencing the central and peripheral nervous system, while others influence renal function and release of renin, aldosterone and vasopressin. This review summarizes the physiology and pathophysiology of the peripheral dopaminergic system and our current understanding of the role of individual dopamine receptors in the pathophysiology of human essential hypertension.

KEYWORDS
Hypertension, dopamine, dopamine receptor, sodium transport, transgenic mice.

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