KFO 219: Basal-Ganglia-Cortex-Loops: Mechanisms of Pathological Interactions and Therapeutic Modulation

Basic data for this project

Description

The tight interconnections between basal-ganglia, thalamus and cortex are generally summarised as basal-ganglia-cortex-loops. They are key-structures for communication in the human brain. Basal-ganglia-cortex loops are important in the performance and control of movements, in cognitive tasks, oculomotor tasks, but also in emotional processing. These different functions are realised partly in segregated structures, a tight interaction between the different functions has to be postulated. For our understanding of basal-ganglia-cortex-loops affecting diseases like movement disorders or obsessive-compulsive disorders, the basal-ganglia-cortex-loops are of utmost importance. In Parkinson’s disease, pathological oscillatory coupling between cortical and subcortical brain areas, seem to be a key pathophysiological mechanism. Pathological oscillatory activity in different frequency bands could well explain not only motor symptoms like tremor or bradykinesia, but also higher cognitive functions and emotional-affective processes are pathologically altered and controlled by the basal-ganglia-cortex-loops. A therapeutic option with respect to modulation of pathological oscillatory activity is deep brain stimulation. This therapy allows a distinct modulation of pathological activity in basal-ganglia-cortex-loops in patients with Parkinson’s disease, tremor and dystonia. Aim of the Clinical Research Unit is the characterisation of pathological basal-ganglia-cortex interactions in different neurological and psychiatric diseases and their therapeutic modulation by deep brain stimulation and pharmacological interventions.