Discovery May Explain Conflicting DBS Results

The mesencephalic locomotor region, a brain region previously thought to control only walking and other forms of locomotion in vertebrates, also regulates postural changes and other movements, according to a study in mice. “It was surprising that within this region, which everybody has linked to locomotion, many of the neurons…

Impaired Movement in Parkinson’s Traced to Faulty Circuits in Brain Stem

Researchers from the Gladstone Institutes published two research papers detailing what appears to be the mechanisms behind imbalances in specific brain regions that cause the movement and walking difficulties experienced by Parkinson’s patients. The papers appeared in the journals Cell and Neuron. Faulty dopamine production is one of the hallmarks of Parkinson’s disease (PD) and has…