Deep brain stimulation (DBS) of the subthalamic nucleus (STN) is an effective treatment for Parkinson's disease (PD). The mechanism is poorly understood. High-frequency STN DBS has been reported to affect motor cortex excitability in a complex way, but the timing between STN stimuli and changes in motor cortical (M1) excitability has not been investigated. We examined the time course of changes...

Tactile displays are gaining recognition as new human-machine interfaces. This paper present a low-weight, single-axis tactile interface designed to stimulate the fingertip through lateral traction. It operates with two ultrasonic linear motors able to move a small plate in contact with the user’s fingertip. This miniature interface is capable of a wide range of stimulation signals due to its h...

Glutamate and its receptor agonists, NMDA, AMPA, and KA, elicit feeding when microinjected into the lateral hypothalamus (LH) of satiated rats. However, determining the relative contributions of AMPA receptors (AMPARs) and KA receptors (KARs) to LH feeding mechanisms has been difficult due to a lack of receptor selective agonists and antagonists. Furthermore, LH injection of KA produces behavio...

OBJECTIVE The primary purpose of this study was to provide insight into the central changes that occur in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) with a view to understanding how these could contribute to symptoms. MATERIAL AND METHODS Seventeen patients with definite ALS and 17 control healthy volunteers were included in the study. Clinical examination, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis severity sco...

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a rapidly progressive neurodegenerative disorder of the motor neurons in the motor cortex, brainstem and spinal cord. A combination of upper and lower motor neuron dysfunction comprises the clinical ALS phenotype. Although the ALS phenotype was first observed by Charcot over 100 years ago, the site of ALS onset and the pathophysiological mechanisms underly...

The experimental part of this study has shown that hunger motivation may be evoked by a long-term (10-180 s) continuous electrical stimulation of the "hunger center" at a current of 133.6±8.1 μA. Positive emotions were caused by electrostimulation at the same current intensity but short-term duration (0.3-0.5 s). A positive feeling elicited by electrostimulation of the motivation center can be ...

In common with other acoustico-lateralis receptors, the hair cells of the lateral-line organs of fishes and amphibia receive efferent innervation. Ultrastructural studies have shown that efferent synapses similar to those found at the base of the hair cells in the cochlea (Engstrom & Wersall, 1958) and vestibular system (Wersall, 1956) exist also at the base of hair cells in lateral-line organs...