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Striatonigral control of movement velocity in mice
Author(s) -
Bartholomew Ryan A.,
Li Haofang,
Gaidis Erin J.,
Stackmann Michelle,
Shoemaker Charles T.,
Rossi Mark A.,
Yin Henry H.
Publication year - 2016
Publication title -
european journal of neuroscience
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.346
H-Index - 206
eISSN - 1460-9568
pISSN - 0953-816X
DOI - 10.1111/ejn.13187
Subject(s) - optogenetics , striatum , neuroscience , indirect pathway of movement , basal ganglia , stimulation , kinematics , channelrhodopsin , direct pathway of movement , psychology , dopamine , motor control , chemistry , physics , central nervous system , classical mechanics
The basal ganglia have long been implicated in action initiation. Using three‐dimensional motion capture, we quantified the effects of optogenetic stimulation of the striatonigral (direct) pathway on movement kinematics. We generated transgenic mice with channelrhodopsin‐2 expression in striatal neurons that express the D1‐like dopamine receptor. With optic fibres placed in the sensorimotor striatum, an area known to contain movement velocity‐related single units, photo‐stimulation reliably produced movements that could be precisely quantified with our motion capture programme. A single light pulse was sufficient to elicit movements with short latencies (<30 ms). Increasing stimulation frequency increased movement speed, with a highly linear relationship. These findings support the hypothesis that the sensorimotor striatum is part of a velocity controller that controls rate of change in body configurations.