title: Imaging insights into basal ganglia function, Parkinson's disease, and dystonia.
abstract: Recent advances in structural and functional imaging have greatly improved our ability to assess normal functions of the basal ganglia, diagnose parkinsonian syndromes, understand the pathophysiology of parkinsonism and other movement disorders, and detect and monitor disease progression. Radionuclide imaging is the best way to detect and monitor dopamine deficiency, and will probably continue to be the best biomarker for assessment of the effects of disease-modifying therapies. However, advances in magnetic resonance enable the separation of patients with Parkinson's disease from healthy controls, and show great promise for differentiation between Parkinson's disease and other akinetic-rigid syndromes. Radionuclide imaging is useful to show the dopaminergic basis for both motor and behavioural complications of Parkinson's disease and its treatment, and alterations in non-dopaminergic systems. Both PET and MRI can be used to study patterns of functional connectivity in the brain, which is disrupted in Parkinson's disease and in association with its complications, and in other basal-ganglia disorders such as dystonia, in which an anatomical substrate is not otherwise apparent. Functional imaging is increasingly used to assess underlying pathological processes such as neuroinflammation and abnormal protein deposition. This imaging is another promising approach to assess the effects of treatments designed to slow disease progression.
authors: Pacific Parkinson's Research Centre and National Parkinson Foundation Centre of Excellence, University of British Columbia and Vancouver Coastal Health, Vancouver, BC, Canada. Electronic address: jstoessl@mail.ubc.ca.
authors: A Jon
authors: AJ
authors: Stoessl
authors: Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale, U 1127, F-75013, Paris, France; Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Unite Mixte de Recherche 7225, F-75013, Paris, France; Sorbonne Universités, Université Pierre et Marie Curie, Paris 06, Unite Mixte de Recherche S 1127, F-75013, Paris, France; Institut du Cerveau et de la Moelle épinière, ICM (Centre de NeuroImagerie de Recherche, CENIR), F-75013, Paris, France; Assistance Publique, Hopitaux de Paris, Hôpital de la Pitié Salpêtrière, Service de Neuroradiologie F-75013, Paris, France.
authors: Stephane
authors: S
authors: Lehericy
authors: Morton and Gloria Shulman Movement Disorder Unit and E J Safra Parkinson Disease Program, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada; Division of Brain, Imaging and Behaviour-Systems Neuroscience, Toronto Western Hospital and Research Institute, University Health Network, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada; Research Imaging Centre, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada.
authors: Antonio P
authors: AP
authors: Strafella
mesh_terms: D001479:Basal Ganglia / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000503:physiopathology; D001931:Brain Mapping / Q000379:methods; D018450:Disease Progression; D004298:Dopamine / Q000378:metabolism*; D004421:Dystonia / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000503:physiopathology; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging / Q000379:methods*; D009682:Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy / Q000379:methods; D010300:Parkinson Disease / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000503:physiopathology; D055420:Perfusion Imaging / Q000379:methods; D049268:Positron-Emission Tomography / Q000379:methods*
chemical_list: D004298:Dopamine