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Subject: NIH STUDY ADVANCES UNDERSTANDING OF MOVEMENT CONTROL
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH
NIH News National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA)
<http://www.niaaa.nih.gov/>
For Immediate Release: Monday, January 28, 2013
CONTACT: NIAAA Press Office, 301-443-3860,
<e-mail:[log in to unmask]>
NIH STUDY ADVANCES UNDERSTANDING OF MOVEMENT CONTROL
Voluntary movements involve the coordinated activation of two brain pathways
that connect parts of deep brain structures called the basal ganglia,
according to a study in mice by researchers at the National Institute on
Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA), part of the National Institutes of
Health. The findings, which challenge the classical view of basal ganglia
function, were published online in Nature on Jan. 23.
"By improving our understanding of how the basal ganglia control movements,
these findings could aid in the development of treatments for disorders in
which these circuits are disrupted, such as Parkinson's disease,
Huntington's disease and addiction," says NIAAA Acting Director Kenneth R.
Warren, Ph.D.
The predominant model of basal ganglia function proposes that direct and
indirect pathways originating in a brain region called the striatum have
opposing effects on movement. Activity of neurons in the direct pathway is
thought to promote movement, while activity in the indirect pathway is
thought to inhibit movement. Newer models, however, suggest that
co-activation of these pathways is necessary to synchronize basal ganglia
circuits during movement.
"Testing these models has been difficult due to the lack of methods to
measure specific neurons in the direct and indirect pathways in freely
moving animals," explains first author Guohong Cui, Ph.D., of the NIAAA
Laboratory for Integrated Neuroscience (LIN).
To overcome these difficulties, Dr. Cui and senior author Rui Costa, Ph.D.,
D.V.M, worked with LIN chief David M. Lovinger Ph.D., NIAAA Cellular
Biophotonics Section Acting Chief Steven Vogel, Ph.D., and their colleagues
to devise a new approach for measuring the activity of neurons deep within
the brain during complex behaviors. Their technique uses fiber optic probes
implanted in the mouse brain striatum to measure light emissions from
neurons engineered to glow when activated.
Using this new approach, the researchers detected neural activity in both
the direct and indirect pathways when mice performed a bar-pressing task. No
such activity was detected when the mice were inactive.
"These neuronal activity patterns differ from previous predictions that one
pathway would be active when animals begin moving while another would be
active when animals are at rest," notes Dr. Costa, of the Champalimaud
Neuroscience Program in Lisbon, Portugal.
Drs. Lovinger and Vogel add that the new technique developed for this study
will be useful for studying a variety of neuron types in other brain regions
during performance of a full repertoire of behaviors.
The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, part of the National
Institutes of Health, is the primary U.S. agency for conducting and
supporting research on the causes, consequences, prevention, and treatment
of alcohol abuse, alcoholism, and alcohol problems. NIAAA also disseminates
research findings to general, professional, and academic audiences.
Additional alcohol research information and publications are available at
<http://www.niaaa.nih.gov>.
About the National Institutes of Health (NIH): NIH, the nation's medical
research agency, includes 27 Institutes and Centers and is a component of
the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. NIH is the primary federal
agency conducting and supporting basic, clinical, and translational medical
research, and is investigating the causes, treatments, and cures for both
common and rare diseases. For more information about NIH and its programs,
visit <www.nih.gov>.
NIH...Turning Discovery into Health -- Registered, U.S. Patent and Trademark
Office ###
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<http://www.nih.gov/news/health/jan2013/niaaa-28.htm>.
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