Substantia nigra

Disease (PD) is a progressive neurological condition of which there is currently no cure. The main pathological feature of the disease is degeneration of the dopaminergic neurons within the brain, primarily in the Pars Compacta region of the Substantia Nigra (SN). This is thought to be a result of the formation of soluble aggregates of α-synuclein known as ‘Lewy Bodies’ in the neurones of PD patients, which can be clearly seen in various regions of the brain upon post mortem examination. Lewy…

In the past it was believed that the cerebellum received information from various areas of the cortex and projected information to the primary motor cortex via thalamus, thus fine-tuning a movement (19). It was also believed that the Basal ganglia was involved with the inhibition and selection of action commands (19). These views suggest the involvement of both cerebellum and Basal ganglia(BG) in purely motor function. But that is not the case, recent studies have found a connection between the…

DYSARTHRIA WHAT IS DYSARTHRIA? Speech production is a complex process involving the co-ordinated contraction of a large number of muscles controlled by the nerve impulses originating in the motor areas of cerebral cortex. The organs that are involved in speech production are the lips, the tongue, the vocal folds and the diaphragm. When these organs don’t function efficiently, the speech tends to be unclear. One such condition which results owing to the malfunctioning of the speech organs is…

Imagine a seed of an apple tree planted inside of ones’ brain- it starts off tiny until its growth encompasses the nerves of the entire body. The branches start to intertwine with the muscles and halt simple movements that one could once do. Their growth creates stiffness in the limbs while the trunk and the leaves soak up all of the dopamine in the brain. The apples are the lewy bodies (clumps in the brain). One never knew how this seed got planted or how it was attracted to their brain but it…

Synaptic dysfunction: Studies in a number of the PARK2 knockout lines suggest the presynaptic dopamine transmission is perturbed. In the Park2tm1Shn knockout line, the evoked dopamine signal of neurons was reduced and could not be restored with DAT inhibition (Goldberg et al., 2003). The normal function of Parkin in dopaminergic synaptic transmission is been explored and found that the signal is lower in parkin-/- mice relative to the control, indicating that loss of Parkin indeed decreased DA…

Like any other cells in the body, when neurons are activated they consume glucose and oxygen to fuel their activity and they produce metabolic waste. According to Sadock, Sadock, and Ruiz (2015), a functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) device works from this principal by using high magnetic fields and radio frequencies to indicate activity. The fMRI helps the medical professional to peer into brain activity, not by measuring brain activity directly, but by observing the flux of oxygen…

Parkinson’s disease is a disorder that renders the central nervous system and motor cortex of the brain to become classified as a movement disorder. Symptoms from Parkinson’s may include muscles becoming tense and contracted leading people to feel pain or stiffness. Other symptoms may include a stooped posture, a slow shuffling walk, inability to keep motion, and postural instability leading to a development of a stooped position. Although doctors cannot link what exactly leads to Parkinson’s to…

6) The monoamine theory of depression foresees the underlying pathophysiologic source for depression is the diminution of levels of norepinephrine, serotonin, and dopamine within the central nervous system (National Center for Biotechnology Information). Indication for this hypothesis is sustained with clinical trials and animal testing. Barchas, J., and Altemus, M. (1999) Monoamine Hypotheses of Mood Disorders Retrieved from http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK28257/ 7) NOT DONE 8) The…

bradykinesia) [1, 2] and non-motor symptoms [3, 4] (i.e. sleep disorders, constipation, cardiac arrhythmias and cognitive deficits), ultimately leading to death. There are two defining features of PD, degeneration of dopaminergic neurons in the substantia nigra and an abundant amount of -synuclein protein in the brain creating Lewy bodies [5]. When -synuclein misfolds it is insoluble and will aggregate, leading to inclusions within the cell bodies and its intracellular processes [6].…

The basal ganglia (BG) receives input at the striatum from the cortex and provides output from the pallidum, in particular the globus pallidus internal (GPi) via the ventral anterior and lateral (VA/VL) thalamic nuclei to the cortex – forming a motor loop.1,2 There are two major pathways in this motor loop, the direct and indirect pathways.1,2 The direct pathway originates in the cortex, projecting to the striatum of the BG which consists of the caudate and putamen nuclei.1,2 The striatum…