In a prior [O]-H2O positron emission tomographic study we reported brain regions involved in human male ejaculation. Here, we used another, more recently acquired data set to evaluate the methodological approach of this previous study, and discovered that part of the reported activation pattern was not related to ejaculation. With a new analysis of these ejaculation data, we now demonstrate eja...

Since testicular orphan nuclear receptor 4 (TR4) was cloned, its physiological functions remain largely unknown. In this study, the TR4 knockout (TR4(-/-)) mouse model was used to investigate the role of TR4 in the adult cerebellum. Behaviorally, these null mice exhibit unsteady gait, as well as involuntary postural and kinetic movements, indicating a disturbance of cerebellar function. In the ...

The cerebellum plays a key role in the acquisition and execution of motor tasks whose physiological foundations were postulated on Purkinje cells' long-term depression (LTD). Numerous research efforts have been focused on understanding the cerebellum as a site of learning and/or memory storage. However, the controversy on which part of the cerebellum participates in motor learning, and how the ...

Saccades normally place the eye on target with one smooth movement. In late-onset Tay-Sachs (LOTS), intrasaccadic transient decelerations occur that may result from (1) premature omnipause neuron (OPN) re-activation due to malfunction of the latch circuit that inhibits OPNs for the duration of the saccade or (2) premature inhibitory burst neuron (IBN) activation due to fastigial nucleus (FN) dy...

Although serotonin (5-hydroxytryptamine, 5-HT) is known to exert a modulatory action on cerebellar function, our current knowledge of the nature of receptor subtypes mediating serotonergic activity in this part of the brain remains fragmentary. In this study, we report the presence and distribution of 5-HT3, 5-HT5A and 5-HT7 receptor-like immunoreactivity in the rat cerebellum using immunofluor...

Fahr's disease or Fahr's syndrome is a rare neurodegenerative disorder characterized by abnormal symmetrical calcifications of the basal ganglia, thalami, sub-cortical hemispheric white matter and deep cerebellar nuclei. It can be idiopathic or associated with an endocrinopathy, frequently with parathyroid disorder. Clinical spectrum of the disease is wide ranging from neurological features lik...

Wilson's disease is an inborn error of copper metabolism characterized by inability of the liver to excrete copper into the bile, with excessive deposition of copper primarily in the liver and in the brain. The lentiform nuclei are involved, most often followed by involvement of the thalami, the pons, midbrain, superior and inferior cerebellar peduncles, and the cerebellar nuclei. Predominant i...

The spatial distribution of low-voltage-activated (LVA) and high-voltage-activated (HVA) barium currents was investigated in neurons of the deep cerebellar nuclei (DCN) by combining barium imaging with voltage clamp. The current-induced fluorescence signal (DeltaF/F) of the HVA current was five times higher then the LVA-induced signal at the soma, but both signals were approximately equal in si...

BACKGROUND There is a high incidence of hereditary degenerative diseases of the central nervous system in purebred dogs. HYPOTHESIS Cerebellar ataxia in Malinois puppies, caused by degenerative changes that predominate in cerebellar nuclei and the granular cell layer, is a hereditary disorder that is distinct from cerebellar cortical abiotrophies. ANIMALS Thirteen Malinois puppies with cere...

BACKGROUND Neurodegeneration with brain iron accumulation (NBIA), formerly known as Hallervorden-Spatz syndrome, is a heterogeneous group of disorders with different treatment options. CASE REPORTS In the first case, progressively generalizing dystonic symptoms appeared during childhood. A mutation in the gene encoding pantothenate kinase 2 (PANK2) was found. Brain MRI showed bilateral hypers...