Effects of antipsychotic drugs on dopamine release and metabolism in the central nervous system

The antagonism of central dopamine receptors by antipsychotic drugs has been postulated as a critical determinant of the therapeutic efficacy of this class of drugs. It is clear, however, that drugs with clinically antipsychotic effects influence dopamine transmission at several levels, including transmitter synthesis, release, and metabolism. Indeed, the “dopamine hypothesis” of schizophrenia was originally offered based upon studies of the alterations in brain dopamine metabolism produced by haloperidol and chlorpromazine in mice.