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basal ganglia

·August 11, 2025·5 min read

Basal Ganglia Switches Neural Codes for Learned vs. Innate Skills

A new study reveals that the brain’s basal ganglia use two distinct neural “languages” to control movement — one for learned skills and another for innate behaviors. Studying rats, researchers found that the dorsolateral striatum was essential for learned tasks but not for natural movements like walking or grooming.

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·May 23, 2023·4 min read

Basal Ganglia Pathway Key to Learning, Not Motor Control

In a radical shift from the past 30 years of neuroscience, researchers have discovered that the basal ganglia, a crucial part of the brain involved in motor control and learning, plays a more significant role in learning than previously thought. Contradicting long-standing beliefs, the study shows that the "indirect pathway" in the basal ganglia drives learning rather than motor control.

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·January 17, 2023·7 min read

3D Organoid Models Show Brain Mechanisms of Tourette Syndrome

Using induced pluripotent stem cells derived from skin cells of people with Tourette syndrome, researchers create 3D brain organoid models of the basal ganglia, an area of the brain previously implicated in TS. The model reveals potential pathologies behind the disorder and could help fashion new therapies to treat TS.

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·August 25, 2022·4 min read

Investigating the Role of Dopamine Circuits in Habit Formation

Dopamine neurons connect subregions of the striatum that contribute to habit formation. The findings shed new light on how habits are formed, and how they can be broken.

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·July 26, 2022·5 min read

Brain Region’s Role in Mind-Body Communication Confirmed

The subthalamic nucleus in the brain communicates with the motor system to help the body stop an action, researchers confirm.

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·July 14, 2022·5 min read

Moderate Drinking Linked to Brain Changes and Cognitive Decline

Consuming seven or more units of alcohol per week is associated with increased iron levels in the brain. Higher levels of iron in the brain is linked to increased risk of neurodegenerative disorders and alcohol-related cognitive decline.

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·July 6, 2022·7 min read

How the Brain Keeps the Urge to Act in Check

Researchers identified a brain region responsible for driving action, and another that suppresses action. The study reports impulsive behaviors can be triggered or suppressed by activating these areas.

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·June 9, 2022·3 min read

Brain Changes Linked to Emotion Discovered in Mysterious ‘Broken Heart Syndrome’

Takotsubo syndrome, a sudden form of acute heart failure often brought on by emotional or physical stress, is associated with changes in brain regions associated with emotion and emotional processing.

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·June 8, 2022·6 min read

Three Distinct Brain Circuits in the Thalamus Contribute to Parkinson’s Symptoms

Neurons in the parafascicular thalamus project to three different parts of the basal ganglia. Targeting these circuits could be a new target for treating motor dysfunction and depression associated with Parkinson's disease.

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·June 2, 2022·2 min read

Neurobiological Model to Better Understand Creative Processes

Researchers propose a new framework for three seemingly unconnected forms of creativity.

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·April 7, 2022·4 min read

Brainstem Atrophy Is Linked to Extrapyramidal Symptoms in Frontotemporal Dementia

Patients who suffer from frontotemporal dementia with extrapyramidal symptoms have brainstem atrophy and reduced metabolic activity in specific brain regions compared to those with FTD without extrapyramidal symptoms.