DISRUPTION OF VISUAL CORTICO-STRIATAL ENSEMBLES IN A MOUSE MODEL OF PARKINSON’S DISEASE

Parkinson’s disease (PD) is a neurodegenerative disorder characterized by the loss of dopaminergic neurons in the substantia nigra that results in motor impairments and non-motor deficits. Among non-motor deficits, visual deficiencies have been frequently reported by PD patients. However, the neurobiological mechanisms underlying visual deficits remain unknown.
It has been shown that dopamine depletion impairs visually guided behavior in mice suggesting that neuronal ensembles related to visual perception are disrupted in Parkinson’s disease.
On the other hand, it is known that cortical neurons from primary visual cortex send direct projections to dorsomedial striatal neurons endowing the dorsomedial striatum with orientation selectivity.
To characterize changes in visual cortico-striatal circuits caused by dopamine depletion, we performed population recordings in primary visual cortex and the dorsomedial striatum in Parkinsonian head fixed mice trained in a visually guided Go/No-Go task.
Our results suggest that dopamine depletion impairs the refinement of visual cortico-striatal ensembles related to Go visual stimuli. Further studies will help to elucidate the role of visual cortico-striatal ensembles during visuomotor integration.