Parkinson’s sufferers given contemporary hope as consultants uncover mind’s ‘pause button

The discovery of a “pause button” in the brains of mice could help scientists better understand Parkinson’s illness — and even perhaps develop new therapies.

Slow or arrested motion, the neuroscientists from Denmark defined, is among the main signs of the progressive and finally debilitating neurological situation.

The group discovered that they may trigger mice to freeze in place by stimulating sure nerve cells in a area of the mind referred to as the pedunculopontine nucleus, of “PPN”, for brief.

The goal cells in query differed from their friends within the PPN by expressing a selected molecular marker referred to as Chx10.

As PPN is a mind area present in all vertebrates — together with people — the researchers say they count on that we now have the identical “pause button” because the mice of their examine.

The examine was undertaken by Professor Ole Kiehn and his colleagues on the University of Copenhagen.

The group stimulated the Chx10+ neurons utilizing a way referred to as optogenetics, during which cells are genetically modified to answer mild.

Prof. Kiehn stated: “We have found a group of nerve cells in the midbrain which, when stimulated, stops all movement. Not just walking — all forms of motor activity.

“They even make the mice stop breathing or breathe more slowly, and their heart rates slow down.”

He added: “There are various ways to stop movement. What is so special about these nerve cells is that, once activated, they cause movement to be paused or freeze.

“[It is] just like setting a film on pause — the actor’s movement suddenly stops on the spot.”

According to the group, once they stopped stimulating the goal nerve cells, the mice resumed shifting precisely as they’d been earlier than — as if “play” had been pressed.

Paper co-author Dr Haizea Goñi-Erro added: “This ‘play-and-pause’ pattern is very unique. It is unlike anything we have seen before.

“It does not resemble other forms of movement or motor arrest we or other researchers have studied.”

In these instances, he defined, “the movement does not necessarily start where it stopped, but may start over with a new pattern.”

The phenomenon witnessed when the pedunculopontine Chx10+ neurons are stimulated is distinct from the “deer in headlights” freezing brought on by excessive worry.

Paper co-author Professor Roberto Leiras stated: “We have compared this type of motor arrest to [that] caused by fear, and they are not identical.

“We are very sure that the movement arrest observed here is not related to fear. Instead, we believe it has something to do with attention or alertness, which is seen in certain situations.

This hypothesis, however, is one that the team said will need additional research to prove correct.

Explaining how the findings could inform research into Parkinson’s disease, Prof. Kiehn said: “Motor arrest or slow movement is one of the cardinal symptoms of Parkinson’s disease.

“We speculate that these special nerve cells in PPN are over-activated in Parkinson’s disease. That would inhibit movement.

He concluded: “Therefore, the study, which primarily has focused on the fundamental mechanisms that control movement in the nervous system, may eventually help us to understand the cause of some of the motor symptoms in Parkinson’s disease.”

The full findings of the examine had been printed within the journal Nature Neuroscience.

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