Annie Landau receives important grant from the Independent Research Fund Denmark
Annie Landau receives 2.88 million DKK from the Independent Research Fund Denmark for the project "PET Imaging the effects of Deep Brain Stimulation on synaptic transporter function in a large animal model of Parkinson's disease"
PROJECT DESCRIPTION
The mechanisms by which high frequency deep brain stimulation (DBS) of the subthalamic nucleus (STN) relieves motor fluctuations in Parkinson’s disease (PD) are unclear but may involve inducing synaptic plasticity throughout neural networks linking basal ganglia to motor cortex. [11C]UCB-J PET is an in vivo marker of synaptic vesicle glycoprotein 2A (SV2A) transporters present in all nerve endings so enables imaging of synaptic integrity. We will use [11C]UCB-J PET to measure changes in synaptic function in basal ganglia, motor and limbic cortex in 6-hydroxydopamine lesioned minipigs made hemi-parkinsonian before and after 6 weeks of clinical 130Hz STN DBS. PET findings will be compared with structural magnetic resonance imaging changes. Our in vivo study will determine whether chronic STN DBS increases synaptic expression and how it alters basal ganglia-cortical connectivity to compensate for striatal dopamine deficiency in PD.
(Source: dff.dk/en/grants/database)