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Trial and Tremor

Misfiring of the brain's Purkinje cells underlies tremor

27 May 2020

Trial and Tremor

Extreme cold or overwhelming fear might make you shiver or tremble. But if those temporary shakes lasted for any significant time, they’d become a debilitating problem. Tremor, the uncontrolled shaking of part of the body, is the most common movement disorder, but treatments are limited by our incomplete understanding of the brain mechanisms behind it. A new study has revealed that Purkinje cells (blue in the mouse cerebellum pictured) are involved. Purkinje cells send regular signals to other areas of the brain, and when these were blocked, tremors in mice stopped. Closer inspection showed that tremors start when the regular signals are modified to send in sporadic bursts. The researchers were able to reduce tremor by targeting the cerebellum with deep brain stimulation – a treatment sometimes used on other areas of the brain – and trigger tremors by altering these cells’ behaviour. This deeper understanding may help get tremor under control.

Written by Anthony Lewis

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BPoD stands for Biomedical Picture of the Day. Managed by the MRC Laboratory of Medical Sciences until Jul 2023, it is now run independently by a dedicated team of scientists and writers. The website aims to engage everyone, young and old, in the wonders of biology, and its influence on medicine. The ever-growing archive of more than 4000 research images documents over a decade of progress. Explore the collection and see what you discover. Images are kindly provided for inclusion on this website through the generosity of scientists across the globe.

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