Name of Fellow

    Schreglmann Sebastian

    Institution

    Funder

    SNSF

    Contact information of fellow

    Country

    Switzerland

    Title of project/programme

    The role of dopamine on cortical plasticity and striatal structure in Dopamine-responsive Dystonia

    Source of funding information

    SNSF

    Total sum awarded (Euro)

    € 68,028

    Start date of award

    01.08.15

    Total duration of award in years

    1.5

    The project/programme is most relevant to:

    Parkinson's disease & PD-related disorders

    Keywords

    Dopamine-responsive Dystonia | Young-onset Parkinson`s disease | Cortical Plasticity | Pathophysiology of Dystonia | Histological structure of human Striatum

    Research Abstract

    Cortical plasticity is a physiological process, by which the strength of synaptic connections can be adapted to environmental needs. In Dystonia, a common movement disorder symptom, cortical plasticity is consistently increased and this is considered a core electrophysiological substrate of the disease. In a particular dystonia syndrome called dopamine-responsive dystonia (DRD), dystonia is effectively reversed by the dopaminergic medication. Similarly, in young-onset Parkinson`s disease (PD) dopaminergic medication has the same clinical effect. However, in healthy controls dopamine is known to increase cortical plasticity.
    It is therefore proposed to study the influence of dopamine on cortical plasticity in DRD and young-onset PD, since these dystonia syndromes offer the possibility to challenge the current understanding of cortical plasticity in dystonia. The application of transcranial magnetic stimulation paradigms established in dystonia research is planned to answer this question.
    Furthermore, according to current knowledge of histological changes in dystonia, changes in the striatal ultrastructure will be studied in comparison to young-onset PD and healthy controls. Additionally, we will for the first time histologically characterize neuropathological changes in tyrosine hydroxylase deficiency, an autosomal-recessive form of DRD.

Types: Fellowships
Member States: Switzerland
Diseases: Parkinson's disease & PD-related disorders
Years: 2016
Database Categories: N/A
Database Tags: N/A

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