In a study from Sweden, binding potential of the dopamine D1 receptor (the most abundant of the DA receptor subtypes) was evaluated in individuals spanning ages 10–30 using positron emission tomography. Binding potential declined non-linearly in all regions, most prominently in cortical regions including the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex during adolescence, with reductions of 26% from adolescence to young adulthood in frontal, anterior cingulate, and occipital cortex over one decade. A slower to flat decline in binding potential was seen for orbitofrontal and posterior cingulate and striatal regions (Jucaite et al. 2010). Expression of the dopamine D2 receptors in the prefrontal cortex peak in infancy then by adolescence reach adult levels (Weickert et al. 2007). In contrast, prefrontal levels of the dopamine receptor D4 show little change with age (Weickert et al. 2007). Overall, the development of dopaminergic transmission varies across particular receptor types, with some showing marked changes well into the third decade of life, past the stage typically considered adolescence.
