241 human active and 13 inactive phosphatases in total;
194 phosphatases have substrate data;
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336 protein substrates;
83 non-protein substrates;
1215 dephosphorylation interactions;
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299 KEGG pathways;
876 Reactome pathways;
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last scientific update: 11 Mar, 2019
last maintenance update: 01 Sep, 2023
Communication between neurons is mediated by the release of neurotransmitter from synaptic vesicles (SVs). At the nerve terminal, SVs cycle through repetitive episodes of exocytosis and endocytosis. SVs are filled with neurotransmitters by active transport. The loaded SVs are then docked at a specialized region of the presynaptic plasma membrane known as the active zone, where they undergo a priming reaction. Upon arrival of an action potential, Ca2+ enters through voltage-gated channels and neurotransmitter is released by exocytosis, usually in less than a millisecond. After fusion, the vesicle is retrieved by endocytosis and reloaded for another round of exocytosis.
Dopamine (DA) is an important and prototypical slow neurotransmitter in the mammalian brain, where it controls a variety of functions including locomotor activity, motivation and reward, learning and memory, and endocrine regulation. Once released from presynaptic axonal terminals, DA interacts with at least five receptor subtypes in the central nervous system (CNS), which have been divided into two groups: the D1-like receptors (D1Rs), comprising D1 and D5 receptors, both positively coupled to adenylyl cyclase and cAMP production, and the D2-like receptors (D2Rs), comprising D2, D3, and D4 receptors, whose activation results in inhibition of adenylyl cyclase and suppression of cAMP production. In addition, D1Rs and D2Rs modulate intracellular Ca2+ levels and a number of Ca2+ -dependent intracellular signaling processes. Through diverse cAMP- and Ca2+-dependent and - independent mechanisms, DA influences neuronal activity, synaptic plasticity, and behavior. Presynaptically localized D2Rs regulate synthesis and release of DA as the main autoreceptor of the dopaminergic system.
Parkinson disease (PD) is a progressive neurodegenerative movement disorder that results primarily from the death of dopaminergic (DA) neurons in the substantia nigra pars compacta (SNc). Mutations in alpha-synuclein, UCHL1 (a ubiquitin carboxy-terminal hydrolase L1), parkin, DJ1 (a parkin-associated protein involved with oxidative stress), and PINK1 (a putative serine threonine kinase) are known to cause early-onset PD. Mutations or altered expression of these proteins contributes to the damage and subsequent loss of DA neurons through common mechanisms that result in proteasome dysfunction, mitochondrial impairment, and oxidative stress. The demise of DA neurons located in the SNc leads to a drop in the dopaminergic input to the striatum. This results in a reduced activation of the direct pathway and in a disinhibition of the indirect pathway, which is associated with the elevation of adenosine A2A receptor transmission. Such unbalanced activity of the striatal output pathway is at the basis of the motor impairment observed in PD.
Drug addiction is a chronic, relapsing disorder in which compulsive drug-seeking and drug-taking behavior persists despite serious negative consequences.There is strong evidence that the dopaminergic system that projects from the ventral tegmental area (VTA) of the midbrain to the nucleus accumbens (NAc), and to other forebrain sites, is the major substrate of reward and reinforcement for both natural rewards and addictive drugs. Cocaine binds strongly to the dopamine-reuptake transporter, preventing the reuptake of dopamine into the nerve terminal. Because of this blocking effect, dopamine remains at high concentrations in the synapse and continues to affect adjacent neurons, producing the characteristic cocaine high. Activated D1 receptor activates the PKA signaling pathway, and this pathway plays a critical role in mediating the behavioral responses to cocaine administration. Cocaine-induced neuroadaptations, including dopamine depletion, may underlie craving and hedonic dysregulation.
Amphetamine is a psychostimulant drug that exerts persistent addictive effects. Most addictive drugs increase extracellular concentrations of dopamine (DA) in nucleus accumbens (NAc) and medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC), projection areas of mesocorticolimbic DA neurons and key components of the brain reward circuit. Amphetamine achieves this elevation in extracellular levels of DA by promoting efflux from synaptic terminals. Acute administration of amphetamine induces phosphorylation of cAMP response element-binding protein (CREB) and expression of a number of immediate early genes (IEGs), such as c-fos. The IEGs is likely to initiate downstream molecular events, which may have important roles in the induction and maintenance of addictive states. Chronic exposure to amphetamine induces a unique transcription factor delta FosB, which plays an essential role in long-term adaptive changes in the brain.
Alcoholism, also called dependence on alcohol (ethanol), is a chronic relapsing disorder that is progressive and has serious detrimental health outcomes. As one of the primary mediators of the rewarding effects of alcohol, dopaminergic ventral tegmental area (VTA) projections to the nucleus accumbens (NAc) have been identified. Acute exposure to alcohol stimulates dopamine release into the NAc, which activates D1 receptors, stimulating PKA signaling and subsequent CREB-mediated gene expression, whereas chronic alcohol exposure leads to an adaptive downregulation of this pathway, in particular of CREB function. The decreased CREB function in the NAc may promote the intake of drugs of abuse to achieve an increase in reward and thus may be involved in the regulation of positive affective states of addiction. PKA signaling also affects NMDA receptor activity and may play an important role in neuroadaptation in response to chronic alcohol exposure.
The human gene SLC6A3 encodes the sodium-dependent dopamine transporter, DAT which mediates the re-uptake of dopamine from the synaptic cleft (Vandenbergh DJ et al, 2000). Dopamine can then be degraded by either COMT or monoamine oxidase
The SLC6 gene family encodes proteins that mediate neurotransmitter uptake thus terminating a synaptic signal. The proteins mediate transport of GABA (gamma-aminobutyric acid), norepinephrine, dopamine, serotonin, glycine, taurine, L-proline, creatine and betaine. These transporters are mainly present in the CNS and PNS (Chen NH et al, 2004)
The human gene SLC6A3 encodes the sodium-dependent dopamine transporter DAT which mediates the Na-dependent re-uptake of dopamine (DA) from the synaptic cleft back into cells, thereby terminating the action of DA (Broer & Gether 2012, Schweikhard & Ziegler 2012). Defects in SLC6A3 can cause Parkinsonism-dystonia infantile (PKDYS; MIM:613135), a neurodegenerative disorder characterised by infantile onset of parkinsonism and dystonia (Kurian et al. 2011)
The human gene SLC6A3 encodes the sodium-dependent dopamine transporter DAT which mediates the Na-dependent re-uptake of dopamine (DA) from the synaptic cleft back into cells, thereby terminating the action of DA (Broer & Gether 2012, Schweikhard & Ziegler 2012). Defects in SLC6A3 can cause Parkinsonism-dystonia infantile (PKDYS; MIM:613135), a neurodegenerative disorder characterised by infantile onset of parkinsonism and dystonia (Kurian et al. 2011)