Article
Version 2
This version is not peer-reviewed
Basal Ganglia Paths Support Acute vs. Automated Execution, Not Movement vs. Stopping
Version 1
: Received: 7 August 2018 / Approved: 8 August 2018 / Online: 8 August 2018 (04:47:36 CEST)
Version 2 : Received: 31 May 2019 / Approved: 31 May 2019 / Online: 31 May 2019 (11:24:42 CEST)
Version 2 : Received: 31 May 2019 / Approved: 31 May 2019 / Online: 31 May 2019 (11:24:42 CEST)
How to cite: Rappoport, A. Basal Ganglia Paths Support Acute vs. Automated Execution, Not Movement vs. Stopping. Preprints 2018, 2018080157 Rappoport, A. Basal Ganglia Paths Support Acute vs. Automated Execution, Not Movement vs. Stopping. Preprints 2018, 2018080157
Abstract
The basal ganglia (BG) are a central component of the brain, crucial to the initiation, execution and learning of adaptive actions. The BG are the major site of the action of dopamine. An important aspect of the BG architecture is the existence of two paths, direct and indirect, having different projection targets and dopamine receptor expression. To understand the BG, dopamine, and related disorders, it is imperative to understand the two paths. The standard account used in neuroscience research for decades posits that the role of the direct path is to support movements, while that of the indirect path is to suppress unselected or completed movements. This account is contradicted by converging evidence. Here, we explain why the arguments supporting the standard account are flawed, and present a new account, in which the role of the indirect path is completely opposite: to support automated execution. During acute events, the direct path allows coarse responses. These are refined by competition, and the resulting focused response is executed and learned by the indirect path, assisted by cholinergic interneurons and the subthalamic nucleus (STN). The new account allows a novel understanding of the symptoms of Parkinson's disease, in particular tremor and rigidity, and of its treatment by STN deep brain stimulation.
Keywords
basal ganglia; dopamine; subthalamic nucleus; Parkinson's disease; brain learning; cholinergic interneurons; deep brain stimulation
Subject
Biology and Life Sciences, Neuroscience and Neurology
Copyright: This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
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