Compensatory striatal-cerebellar connectivity in mild-moderate Parkinson's disease.

ABSTRACT: Dopamine depletion in the putamen is associated with altered motor network functional connectivity in people with Parkinson's disease (PD), but the functional significance of these changes remains unclear, attributed to either pathological or compensatory mechanisms in different studies. Here, we examined the effects of PD on dorsal caudal putamen functional connectivity, off and on dopamine replacement therapy (DRT), using resting state fMRI. Motor performance was assessed with the Purdue pegboard task. Twenty-one patients with mild-moderate Parkinson's disease were studied twice, once after an overnight DRT washout and once after the administration of a standard dose of levodopa (Sinemet), and compared to 20 demographically-matched healthy control participants. PD patients off DRT showed

SUBMITTER: Simioni AC 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4669533 | biostudies-literature | 2016

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature