Spontaneous and Evoked Activity of Substantia Nigra Pars Reticulata Neurons during High-Frequency Stimulation of the Subthalamic Nucleus

The subthalamic nucleus (STN), a major component of the basal ganglia, exerts an excitatory influence on the output structures of this system i.e., the substantia nigra pars reticulata (SNR) and the internal segment of the globus pallidus. High-frequency stimulation of the STN is a method currently...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:The Journal of neuroscience 2003-10, Vol.23 (30), p.9929-9936
Main Authors: Maurice, Nicolas, Thierry, Anne-Marie, Glowinski, Jacques, Deniau, Jean-Michel
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Action Potentials - physiology
Animals
Behavioral/Systems/Cognitive
Cerebral Cortex - physiology
Electric Stimulation - methods
GABA Antagonists - pharmacology
gamma-Aminobutyric Acid - metabolism
Male
Motor Cortex - physiology
Neural Inhibition - drug effects
Neural Inhibition - physiology
Neurons - drug effects
Neurons - physiology
Rats
Rats, Sprague-Dawley
Substantia Nigra - cytology
Substantia Nigra - drug effects
Substantia Nigra - physiology
Subthalamic Nucleus - physiology
Synaptic Transmission - physiology
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Summary:The subthalamic nucleus (STN), a major component of the basal ganglia, exerts an excitatory influence on the output structures of this system i.e., the substantia nigra pars reticulata (SNR) and the internal segment of the globus pallidus. High-frequency stimulation of the STN is a method currently used to treat parkinsonian symptoms. The aim of the present study was to analyze the effects of STN high-frequency stimulation on the activity of SNR neurons and to investigate its impact on the transfer of information between the cerebral cortex and the SNR. During STN high-frequency stimulation, the activity of SNR cells was decreased at low-intensity stimulation, whereas it was increased at a higher intensity. The decrease in the discharge of SNR cells likely results from the activation of a GABAergic transmission in the SNR because this effect was blocked by local application of bicuculline. The increased activity likely results from the activation of the glutamatergic subthalamonigral projection because the latency of the evoked excitations was consistent with the conduction time of the subthalamonigral neurons. Finally, during STN high-frequency stimulation, the transmission of cortical information along the direct trans-striatal pathway was preserved, whereas the functionality of the trans-subthalamic pathways was partly preserved or completely blocked depending on the stimulation intensity. The present data indicate that STN high-frequency stimulation influences the activity of SNR cells through activation of their excitatory and inhibitory synaptic afferent pathways as well as antidromic activation of the projection neurons.
ISSN:0270-6474
1529-2401
DOI:10.1523/jneurosci.23-30-09929.2003