Journal
BRAIN
Volume 125, Issue -, Pages 2418-2430Publisher
OXFORD UNIV PRESS
DOI: 10.1093/brain/awf259
Keywords
pedunculopontine nucleus; akinesia; gamma-aminobutyric acid; bicuculline
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Funding
- Medical Research Council [G0200561, G0701698] Funding Source: Medline
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Recent studies, mainly in animals, have shown that the pedunculopontine nucleus (PPN) in the upper brainstem has extensive connections with several motor centres in the CNS. This structure has also been implicated in the akinesia seen in patients with Parkinson's disease. Here we demonstrate that microinjection of gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) receptor A antagonist substance, bicuculline, into the PPN of non-human primates (n = 2) rendered parkinsonian with 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine (MPTP) results in significant improvement of akinesia. The effect of bicuculline microinjection in the PPN matches that of oral administration of l-dopa. This finding opens up new possibilities in the management of akinesia, the most intractable symptom of advanced Parkinson's disease.
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