PET study of the [11C]raclopride binding in the striatum of the awake cat: effects of anaesthetics and role of cerebral blood flow.

Cats were trained to stay in a containment box, without developing any signs of behavioural stress, while their head was maintained in a position that allowed positron emission tomography (PET) experiments to be performed. The binding potential for [(11)C]raclopride (BP(raclo)), a radioligand with good specificity for dopamine (DA) receptors of the D(2) type, was measured in the striatum and in three experimental situations: awake, anaesthetised with ketamine (50 mg kg(-1) h(-1); i.m.