The current model of basal ganglia circuits has been introduced almost two decades ago and has settled the basis for our understanding of basal ganglia physiology and movement disorders. Although many questions are yet to be answered, several efforts have been recently made to shed new light on basal ganglia function. The traditional concept of "direct" and "indirect" pathways, obtained from ax...

The "basal ganglia" refers to a group of subcortical nuclei responsible primarily for motor control, as well as other roles such as motor learning, executive functions and behaviors, and emotions. Proposed more than two decades ago, the classical basal ganglia model shows how information flows through the basal ganglia back to the cortex through two pathways with opposing effects for the proper...

The basal ganglia are a group of interconnected subcortical nuclei that represent one of the brain's fundamental processing units. In humans basal ganglia dysfunctions have been associated with numerous debilitating conditions, including Parkinson's disease. To appreciate fully how complicated systems can malfunction, it may first be necessary to understand how such networks work normally. The ...

Basal ganglia-thalamocortical circuits are critical for motor control and motor learning. Classically, basal ganglia nuclei are thought to regulate motor behavior by increasing or decreasing cortical firing rates, and basal ganglia diseases are assumed to reflect abnormal overall activity levels. More recent studies suggest instead that motor disorders derive from abnormal firing patterns, and ...

Hemorrhage of the basal ganglia is common in hypertensive patients, and most of the cases are spon- taneous unilateral hemorrhage. Traumatic basal ganglia hemorrhage is uncommon, while bilateral hemorrhage of the basal ganglia after trauma is an extremely rare entity. This report described a rare case of bilateral hemorrhage of the basal ganglia after head trauma. We also analyzed the mechanism...

The basal ganglia are more highly interconnected with the pedunculopontine tegmental nucleus (PPN) than with any other brain region. Regulation and relay of basal ganglia activity are two key functions of the PPN. The PPN provides an interface for the basal ganglia to influence sleep and waking, and the two structures are similarly implicated in learning, reward and other cognitive functions. P...

Bilateral traumatic hemorrhage of the basal ganglia is an extremely rare neuropathologic entity. Bilateral basal ganglia hemorrhage secondary to blast injury has not described before. We report a case with bilateral basal ganglia hemorrhage secondary to explosion.