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Disruption of the function of the primary motor cortex (M1) is thought to play a critical role in motor dysfunction in Parkinson's disease (PD). Detailed information regarding the specific aspects of M1 circuits that become abnormal is lacking. We recorded single units and local field potentials (LFPs) of M1 neurons in unilateral 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA) lesion rats and control rats to assess the impact of dopamine (DA) cell loss during rest and a forelimb reaching task. Our results indicated that M1 neurons can be classified into two groups (putative pyramidal neurons and putative interneurons) and that 6-OHDA could modify the activity of different M1 subpopulations to a large extent. Reduced activation of putative pyramidal neurons during inattentive rest and reaching was observed. In addition, 6-OHDA intoxication was associated with an increase in certain LFP frequencies, especially those in the beta range (broadly defined here as any frequency between 12 and 35 Hz), which become pathologically exaggerated throughout cortico-basal ganglia circuits after dopamine depletion. Furthermore, assessment of different spike-LFP coupling parameters revealed that the putative pyramidal neurons were particularly prone to being phase-locked to ongoing cortical oscillations at 12–35 Hz during reaching. Conversely, putative interneurons were neither hypoactive nor synchronized to ongoing cortical oscillations. These data collectively demonstrate a neuron type-selective alteration in the M1 in hemiparkinsonian rats. These alterations hamper the ability of the M1 to contribute to motor conduction and are likely some of the main contributors to motor impairments in PD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract The pedunculopontine nucleus (PPN) shows altered electrophysiological and anatomic characteristics in Parkinson's disease (PD), but little is known about the effect of 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA) lesion and levodopa (L -DOPA) therapy on the relationship between spike and local field potential (LFP) activities in the PPN and motor cortex. Aiming to investigate this, synchronous spike and LFP signals in the PPN and primary motor cortex (M1) were recorded. The spike–LFP relationship was evaluated using coherence analysis, phase-lock and spike-field coherence (SFC). The results suggested that 6-OHDA lesion had a significant effect on the spike–LFP relationship between the PPN and M1 in rats under a rest or locomotion state. The significantly altered frequency bands varied across different neuron types and animal activity states. In addition, the altered coherence values between PPN spike and M1 LFP were refractory to long-term L -DOPA therapy although all other changes could be reversed by this drug treatment. All results provided evidence of the spike–LFP relationship between the PPN and M1 in PD, revealing some network mechanisms of the cortico-basal ganglia circuitry and PPN, which might be an underlying candidate for PD pathophysiology and therapy. Highlights • 6-OHDA lesion in SNc had effect on spike–LFP coherence between PPN and M1 in rats. • Distinct neuron types in PPN and M1 showed different spike–LFP coherence alteration. • In spike–LFP coherency between PPN and M1, L -DOPA has a therapeutic limitation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Levodopa ( l -DOPA) has been proved to reverse the pathologic neuron activities in many brain regions related to Parkinson’s disease (PD). But little is known about the effect of l -DOPA on the altered electrophysiological coherent activities between pedunculopontine nucleus (PPN) and motor cortex. To investigate this, local field potentials (LFPs) of PPN and primary motor cortex (M1) were recorded simultaneously in control, 6-hydroxydopamine lesioned and lesioned rats with l -DOPA chronic treatment. The results revealed that in resting state, chronic l -DOPA treatment could correct the suppressed power of LFPs in PPN and M1 in low-frequency band (1–7 Hz) and the enhanced power in high-frequency band (7–70 Hz in PPN and 12–70 Hz in M1) of lesioned rats. In locomotor state, l -DOPA treatment could correct the alterations in most of frequency bands except the δ band in PPN and α band in M1. Moreover, l -DOPA could also reverse the altered coherent relationships caused by dopamine depletion in resting state between PPN and M1 in β band. And in locomotor state, l -DOPA had therapeutic effect on the alterations in δ and β bands but not in the α band. These findings provide evidence that l -DOPA can reverse the altered LFP activities in PPN and M1 and their relationships in a rat model of PD, which contributes to better understanding the electrophysiological mechanisms of the pathophysiology and therapy of PD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The pedunculopontine nucleus (PPN) is a new deep brain stimulation target for treating Parkinson’s disease (PD). But the alterations of the PPN electrophysiological activities in PD are still debated. To investigate these potential alterations, extracellular single unit and local field potential (LFP) activities in the PPN were recorded in unilateral hemispheric 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA) lesioned rats and in control rats, respectively. The spike activity results revealed two types of neurons (Type I and Type II) with distinct electrophysiological characteristics in the PPN. Both types of neurons had increased firing rate and changed firing pattern in lesioned rats when compared to control rats. Specifically, Type II neurons showed an increased firing rate when the rat state was switched from rest to locomotion. The LFP results demonstrated that lesioned rats had lower LFP power at 0.7–12 Hz and higher power at 12–30 Hz than did control animals in either resting or locomotor state. These findings provide a better understanding of the effects of 6-OHDA lesion on neuronal activities in the PPN and also provide a proof of the link between this structure and locomotion, which contributes to better understanding the mechanisms of the PPN functioning in the pathophysiology of PD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]