The Movement System

Basal Ganglia
„ Interconnected nuclei „ Corpus striatum
… Caudate … Caudate
… Putamen … Putamen
… Globus pallidus … Globus pallidus
… Nucleus accumbens „ Striatum
… Olfactory tubercle … Caudate
„ Motor & non- … Putamen
 Striatum
„ Caudate
„ Putamen
„ Globus pallidus
„ Internal capsule
 Striatum
„ Caudate
… Head bulges
into lat.
Ventricle
… Degenerative
diseases, aka
Huntington’s,
bulge is lost
 Caudate
„ Head – anterior
horn
„ Tail – inferior
horn
Striatum
„ 2 types of neurons
… Spiny – projection neurons
„ Silent at rest
„ Discharge when stimulated

„ Lost in Huntington’s Chorea

… i.e. lose output of striatum
… Aspiny - interneurons
Spiny Neuron Inputs
„ Cortical
… Distal dendrites
„ Local inputs
… Proximal dendrites
… Soma

„ Inputs nearer to cell

body modulate far
inputs.
Input to Striatum
„ Direct
… Corticostriate
projection
„ Almost all cortical areas
…3 distinct zones
„ Sensorimotor
… Putamen
„ Associative
… Caudate
„ Limbic
… Nucleus accumbens
„ Indirect
Output from Striatum
„ Substantia Nigra
„ Globus pallidus
„ Nucleus accumbens
 Globus Pallidus & Substantia Nigra

„ Globus pallidus
… Arm & leg
representation
„ Substantia nigra
… Head & neck
representation
„ Multipolar projection
neurons
„ 90% input from
striatum
Striatopallidal Pathways
„ Direct
… Striatum to internal segment
of globus pallidus &
substantia nigra pars
reticulata
… Disinhibits thalamus
… Increase motor activity
… Hyperkinesia – Huntington’s
chorea
„ Indirect
… Striatum to external globus
pallidus to subthalamic
nucleus to GPi & SNr
… Inhibit thalamus
… Decrease motor activity
… Enhanced activation –
Parkinson’s hypokinesia
 GPi/SNr Output
„ Major output
… Thalamus
„ Ventral anterior
„ Ventral lateral
„ Dorsomeidal
„ Intralaminar
… Fields of Forel
„ Minor output
… S.C.
… Habenular nucleus
… Reticular formation
… Spinal cord
 Subthalamic Nucleus
„ Inputs
… Cortex
„ Motor, premotor,
supplementary motor
areas
… GPe
… Thalamus
… SNc
… Dorsal Nucleus of
Raphe
„ Reticular input
 Subthalamic Nucleus
„ Outputs
… GPe
… GPi
… SNr
„ Lesions
… Ballism
„ Violent, involuntary
movements
„ Deep Brain Stim
… Treatment of
Parkinson’s
Corticostriatothalamocortical Loops

„ 5 parallel loops
… Motor
… Oculomotor
… Dorsolateral prefrontal
… Lateral orbitofrontal
… Limbic
„ Cortical area -> striatum -> globus pallidus
-> thalamus -> back to cortical area
Motor Loop
„ Putamen
… Arm, leg, face
inputs
… Target location
… Limb kinematics
… Muscle pattern
Oculomotor Loop
„ Caudate nucleus
„ Eye movements
Dorsolateral Prefrontal Loop
„ Caudate nucleus

„ DLPC –
… Possibly unique to
humans
… Damage –
schizophrenia
… TMS – treat
depression
Lateral Orbitofrontal Loop
„ Caudate nucleus

„ Lateral orbitofrontal
… Planning complex
behaviors
… Personality
Limbic Loop
„ Caudate, Putamen,
Nucleus
accumbens,
olfactory tubercle
„ Implicated in
schizophrenia
Split Circuitry
„ Closed loops
… Previous loops
„ Open loops
… Allows for cross
communication
… Affects a cortical
area that does not
project to striatum
 Basal Ganglia Functions
„ Motor
… Automatic execution of
learned motor plan
… Preparation for
movement
… Cortically initiated
… Damage – slower, less
automatic, less
accurate movements
„ Presumably from
cortical mechanism only
… Tics & Tourette’s
Basal Ganglia Functions
„ Gating Sensory Information for Motor
Control
… Hypokinesia – Parkinson’s
„ Decreased input of sensory information
… Hyperkinesia – Huntington’s
„ Increased access to sensory information
Basal Ganglia Functions
„ Cognitive
… Dorsolateral prefrontal loop
„ Deficits
… Spatial memory
… Episodic memory
… Semantic information

„ Schizophrenia
„ Huntington’s chorea – cognitive disturbances
„ Parkinson’s disease – cognitive disturbances

… Lateral Orbitofrontal loop

„ Lesions
„ Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)
Basal Ganglia Functions
„ Emotional/Motivation
… Limbic loop
„ Schizophrenia
„ Depression

… Basal ganglia
„ Decrease in size in bipolar disorder
Basal Ganglia: Clinical Correlates

„ Hyperkinetic Disorders
… Chorea
„ Milkmaid’s grip
… Cannot sustain tight hand grip
„ Trombone tongue
… Cannot maintain protruded tongue
… Darts in and out
Basal Ganglia: Clinical Correlates

„ Huntington’s
„ Atrophy of
caudate
(head) visible
in lateral
ventricle
Basal Ganglia: Clinical Correlates

„ Hyperkinetic disorders (continued)

… Athetosis
„ Greek for ‘without position’
„ Slow, writhing, continuous, worm-like movements
of the fingers.
„ Lesion of putamen

… Ballism
„ Greek for ‘jump’
„ Violent involuntary movements of the limbs
„ Often one side of body
… hemiballismus
Basal Ganglia: Clinical Correlates

„ Hyperkinetic disorders (continued)

… Dystonia
„ Greek for ‘bad tone’
„ Twisting, slow, contorting, involuntary movement
… Sustained and repetitive
„ Focal
… One body part, e.g. hand
ƒ Writer’s cramp
„ Segmental
… 2 or more adjacent body parts, e.g. head and neck
ƒ Torticollis – involuntary turning/tilting of head
„ Generalized
Basal Ganglia: Clinical Correlates
„ Hyperkinetic disorders (continued)
… Tic
„ Brief, sudden, rapid, intermittent movements or
sounds.
„ Simple
… Contractions of only one group of muscles, e.g. eyeblinks
„ Complex
… Coordinated sequence of movements, e.g. eyeblink and
shoulder shrug
„ Transient – days to weeks
„ Chronic – months to years
„ Prelude to Tourette’s
Basal Ganglia: Clinical Correlates
„ Hyperkinetic disorders (continued)
… Tourette’s
„ Motor and verbal tics.
„ Shrunken caudate
Basal Ganglia: Clinical Correlates

„ Hypokinetic Disorders
… Parkinson’s
„ Tremor - rhythmic, recurring
„ Cogwheel rigidity – resistance to passive
movement of joint throughout range of motion
„ Hypokinesia/akinesia – lessining/loss of associated
movements, e.g. arm swinging when walking
„ Dopamine depletion
… L-Dopa treatment