# In Vivo Fluorescent Microscopy Analysis of Motor Cortex Activation by STN DBS

> **NIH NIH R01** · MAYO CLINIC ROCHESTER · 2020 · $371,057

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY
Subthalamic nucleus (STN) deep brain stimulation (DBS) is a common surgical treatment for Parkinson’s disease
(PD). Despite over 20 years of clinical success, the therapeutic mechanisms of STN DBS remain elusive.
However, it has become clear that DBS acts at the molecular, cellular, and systems levels in complex and
sometimes contradictory ways. Current techniques such as electrophysiology, electrochemistry, and functional
imaging commonly used to study pieces of this puzzle are limited in either resolution or behavioral paradigms
these can be applied to, and have thus not provided all the information needed to parse out the complicated
relationships between stimulation and evoked effects. Here, we propose the use of fluorescence calcium
microscopy in GCaMP6f-expressing rats using a head-mounted miniature single photon system as a novel tool
to bridge the gap between cellular and system level understanding of DBS in awake behaving animal models of
PD. To this end, we will analyze neural activity changes in motor cortex evoked by stimulation of the STN during
open field, stepping, cylinder tests, and apomorphine-induced rotations, all of which are stereotypical tests that
have shown predictive validity for evaluation of movement and therapeutic efficacy in parkinsonian animals. The
techniques proposed here provide a unique approach for answering questions about DBS mechanisms such as
whether DBS-induced activation or pharmacologic inhibition of excitatory STN glutamatergic neuronal
projections to the globus pallidus internus / substantia nigra reticulata produces detectable changes in motor
cortex activity associated with changes in behavioral outcomes (e.g., open field, kinematic assessment of
stepping, cylinder, and apomorphine-induced rotation tests).

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 9882351
- **Project number:** 5R01NS107336-03
- **Recipient organization:** MAYO CLINIC ROCHESTER
- **Principal Investigator:** Luis Lujan
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $371,057
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2018-05-01 → 2023-02-28

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/9882351

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 9882351, In Vivo Fluorescent Microscopy Analysis of Motor Cortex Activation by STN DBS (5R01NS107336-03). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-25 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/9882351. Licensed CC0.

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