Principal Investigators

    SHIH, YEN-YU IAN

    Institution

    UNIV OF NORTH CAROLINA CHAPEL HILL

    Contact information of lead PI

    Country

    USA

    Title of project or programme

    Functional dissection of therapeutic deep brain stimulation circuitry

    Source of funding information

    NIH (NINDS)

    Total sum awarded (Euro)

    € 1,430,752.29

    Start date of award

    15/05/2015

    Total duration of award in years

    4

    The project/programme is most relevant to:

    Parkinson's disease & PD-related disorders

    Keywords

    Deep Brain Stimulation, Structure of subthalamic nucleus, Dissection, STN stimulation, optogenetics

    Research Abstract

    ? DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Deep brain stimulation (DBS) is a well-established neurosurgical therapy for multiple neurological and psychiatric disorders. In DBS, an electrode is stereotactically guided to a target cerebral nucleus and high frequency (~130 Hz) electrical stimulation is delivered through a pacemaker-like subcutaneous stimulating device. It is most commonly employed in the treatment of Parkinson’s disease (PD), generally in cases where other medical therapies have become inadequate or dyskinesias have become intolerable. When applied for the symptomatic treatment of PD, the subthalamic nucleus (STN) is frequently targeted, often resulting in a marked reduction in several hallmark PD symptoms, including resting tremor and rigidity. However, despite these benefits, many parkinsonian symptoms are frequently refractory to, or may worsen during STN-DBS. The STN is both anatomically heterogeneous and fiber-dense, and thus there is a high likelihood of recruitment of off-target circuits during STN-DBS, even with accurate electrode placements. A better understanding of how DBS exerts its therapeutic effects will allow optimization of this procedure to enhance therapeutic outcomes and reduce unwanted side-effects. The proposed project aims to address three critical, yet elusive questions of: 1) which neural circuits represent on- and off-target STN DBS effects, 2) whether selective optogenetic stimulation of STN neurons ameliorate parkinsonian motor deficits, and 3) which neural circuits are necessary for therapeutic STN-DBS. To these ends, we will use state-of-the-art functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), functional connectivity MRI (fcMRI), electrophysiology, optogenetics, and behavioral assessment to dissect therapeutic DBS circuitry in an animal model of PD, in which the amelioration of motor deficits are strongly DBS-dependent. Our central hypotheses are that: 1) on- and off-target DBS exhibit behavior- correlated, distinct brain activity and connectivity patterns, 2) high frequency optogenetic stimulation of the STN cell bodies mimics STN-DBS therapy and suppresses pathological oscillatory activity, and 3) suppressing pivotal circuit elements using optogenetics during therapeutic DBS attenuates motor deficit rescue, and thus allowing effective therapeutic DBS circuits to be separated from DBS side effects. Our group has extensive experience in DBS-fMRI studies in rodents. Our co-investigators are also leaders in understanding and continuing development of DBS, optogenetics, and brain network analysis approaches. Together, we are in the unique position to undertake this much-needed line of research. This project will provide novel insights into DBS mechanisms, and lay a foundation to establish new DBS treatment targets and stimulus paradigms for a wide variety of neurological and psychiatric disorders.

    Lay Summary

    PUBLIC HEALTH RELEVANCE: Deep brain stimulation (DBS) is a powerful therapeutic tool for the alleviation of multiple neurological and psychiatric symptoms. However, the mechanisms by which DBS works are poorly understood, greatly limiting the ability of clinicians to improve this therapy. This project will take novel imaging, electrophysiological and behavioral approaches towards identifying the brain neural circuits responsible for DBS efficacy, with the ultimate goal of enhancing DBS therapeutic outcomes and reducing unwanted side-effects.

    Further information available at:

Types: Investments > €500k
Member States: United States of America
Diseases: Parkinson's disease & PD-related disorders
Years: 2016
Database Categories: N/A
Database Tags: N/A

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