A2 Parkinson (basal ganglia circuit, dopaminergic loss)

Title

Parkinson's disease results from the progressive degeneration of dopaminergic neurons in the substantia nigra, which reduces the availability of striatal dopamine and unbalances the direct (movement facilitator, D1 receptors) and indirect (movement inhibitory, D2 receptors) pathways of the cortico-basal ganglia-thalamo-cortical circuit. The net output of the internal globus pallidus, resulting from the balance between both pathways, increases its inhibition on the thalamus, reducing motor facilitation. This imbalance also favors pathological oscillations in the beta band within the circuit, modeled as an extension of the E09 coupled oscillator scheme, whose power is clinically correlated with the degree of bradykinesia (slowness of movement).

ID:4284