scholarly journals Corticostriatal Plastic Changes in Experimental L-DOPA-Induced Dyskinesia

2012 ◽  
Vol 2012 ◽  
pp. 1-10 ◽  
Author(s):  
Veronica Ghiglieri ◽  
Vincenza Bagetta ◽  
Valentina Pendolino ◽  
Barbara Picconi ◽  
Paolo Calabresi

In Parkinson’s disease (PD), alteration of dopamine- (DA-) dependent striatal functions and pulsatile stimulation of DA receptors caused by the discontinuous administration of levodopa (L-DOPA) lead to a complex cascade of events affecting the postsynaptic striatal neurons that might account for the appearance of L-DOPA-induced dyskinesia (LID). Experimental models of LID have been widely used and extensively characterized in rodents and electrophysiological studies provided remarkable insights into the inner mechanisms underlying L-DOPA-induced corticostriatal plastic changes. Here we provide an overview of recent findings that represent a further step into the comprehension of mechanisms underlying maladaptive changes of basal ganglia functions in response to L-DOPA and associated to development of LID.

2016 ◽  
Vol 113 (17) ◽  
pp. E2440-E2449 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dimitri Ryczko ◽  
Jackson J. Cone ◽  
Michael H. Alpert ◽  
Laurent Goetz ◽  
François Auclair ◽  
...  

Dopamine neurons are classically known to modulate locomotion indirectly through ascending projections to the basal ganglia that project down to brainstem locomotor networks. Their loss in Parkinson’s disease is devastating. In lampreys, we recently showed that brainstem networks also receive direct descending dopaminergic inputs that potentiate locomotor output. Here, we provide evidence that this descending dopaminergic pathway is conserved to higher vertebrates, including mammals. In salamanders, dopamine neurons projecting to the striatum or brainstem locomotor networks were partly intermingled. Stimulation of the dopaminergic region evoked dopamine release in brainstem locomotor networks and concurrent reticulospinal activity. In rats, some dopamine neurons projecting to the striatum also innervated the pedunculopontine nucleus, a known locomotor center, and stimulation of the dopaminergic region evoked pedunculopontine dopamine release in vivo. Finally, we found dopaminergic fibers in the human pedunculopontine nucleus. The conservation of a descending dopaminergic pathway across vertebrates warrants re-evaluating dopamine’s role in locomotion.


1989 ◽  
Vol 28 (03) ◽  
pp. 92-94 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. Neumann ◽  
H. Baas ◽  
R. Hefner ◽  
G. Hör

The symptoms of Parkinson’s disease often begin on one side of the body and continue to do so as the disease progresses. First SPECT results in 4 patients with hemiparkinsonism using 99mTc-HMPAO as perfusion marker are reported. Three patients exhibited reduced tracer uptake in the contralateral basal ganglia One patient who was under therapy for 1 year, showed a different perfusion pattern with reduced uptake in both basal ganglia. These results might indicate reduced perfusion secondary to reduced striatal neuronal activity.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document