Neurophysiology of Basal Ganglia-related Movement Disorders

The role of the basal ganglia in normal movement, as in other domains, is still a matter of controversy. Likewise, motor impairments in neurological movement disorders are poorly understood.

Using electro- and magnetoencephalography we study slow brain potentials and oscillatory activity in motor and cognitive tasks, as a means to elucidate basal ganglia function and basal ganglia pathophysiology of neurological movement disorders. A central theme concerns the role of altered oscillatory activity in basal ganglia-thalamo-cortical circuits. Current work addresses basal ganglia involvement in the selection of movement and timing functions of the basal ganglia. The latter work has an applied component related to cueing in Parkinson’s disease.