Dopamine, Immunity, and Disease

Abstract

The neurotransmitter dopamine is a key factor in central nervous system (CNS) function, regulatingmany processes including reward, movement, and cognition. Dopamine also regulates critical functions in peripheral organs, such as blood pressure, renal activity, and intestinalmotility. Beyond these functions, a growing body of evidence indicates that dopamine is an important immunoregulatory factor. Most types of immune cells express dopamine receptors and other dopaminergic proteins, andmany immune cells take up, produce, store, and/ or release dopamine, suggesting that dopaminergic immunomodulation is important for immune function. Targeting these pathways could be a promising avenue for the treatment of inflammation and disease, but despite increasing research in this area, data on the specific effects of dopamine on many immune cells and disease processes remain inconsistent and poorly understood. Therefore, this reviewintegrates the current knowledge of the role of dopamine in immune cell function and inflammatory signaling across systems. We also discuss the current understanding of dopaminergic regulation of immune signaling in the CNS and peripheral tissues, highlighting the role of dopaminergic immunomodulation in diseases such asParkinson’s disease, several neuropsychiatric conditions, neurologic human immunodeficiency virus, inflammatory bowel disease, rheumatoid arthritis, and others. Careful consideration is given to the influence of experimental design on results, and we note a number of areas in need of further research. Overall, this review integrates our knowledge of dopaminergic immunology at the cellular, tissue, and disease level and prompts the development of therapeutics and strategies targeted toward ameliorating disease through dopaminergic regulation of immunity.