Event Details:
Join the speaker for coffee, cookies, and conversation before the talk, starting at 11:45am.
Circuit-inspired strategies to improve treatments for Parkinson’s disease
Abstract
The identification of distinct cell-types throughout the basal ganglia has been essential in advancing understanding of network function and improving neurological therapies. In the globus pallidus externa (GPe), interventions targeting neuronal subpopulations have profound therapeutic potential, but are challenging to implement in clinical settings. We investigated whether electrical stimulation can be tuned to engage cell-type specific responses in the GPe. Although conventional stimulation was non-specific, brief, high frequency bursts of stimulation elicited bimodal responses of Parvalbumin (PV-GPe) and Lim homeobox 6 (Lhx6-GPe) subpopulations. In dopamine depleted mice, burst-DBS stimulation optimized for cell-type specificity induced motor recovery with sustained therapeutic benefits that persisted for hours after the offset of stimulation. These results establish the feasibility of shaping electrical stimulation patterns to drive population-specific neuromodulation in the central nervous system, and suggests the potential for developing a more robust toolbox for deep brain stimulation therapies in humans.
Aryn Gittis
Biological Sciences and Neuroscience Institute, Carnegie Mellon University
Dr. Gittis studies neural circuits in the basal ganglia, a brain region involved in movement, learning, motivation and reward. Her research focuses on how neural circuits change in Parkinson’s disease and how function can be restored. She uses preclinical models to study circuit function using a variety of techniques including electrophysiology, optogenetics, histology and behavior.
Hosted by - Jun Ding (Ding Lab)
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About the Wu Tsai Neurosciences Seminar Series
The Wu Tsai Neurosciences Institute seminar series brings together the Stanford neuroscience community to discuss cutting-edge, cross-disciplinary brain research, from biochemistry to behavior and beyond.
Topics include new discoveries in fundamental neurobiology; advances in human and translational neuroscience; insights from computational and theoretical neuroscience; and the development of novel research technologies and neuro-engineering breakthroughs.
Unless otherwise noted, seminars are held Thursdays at 12:00 noon PT.
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