STEREOTACTIC APPROACHES TO MONKEY BRAIN

University Of Washington, Seattle WA

Investigators

Linked publications & trials

Abstract

The project title summarizes my role in four projects that are described separately by the Principal Investigators. In "Limbic Seizures and Neurobehavioral Development" (V. Gunderson) my principal role is to arrange for the induction of seizures by focal drug injections at sensitive sites in the brain. In 1998 we used my curved-injector technique to treat an extended portion of the entorhinal cortex. The first acute injection of bicuculline in each of five monkeys led to seizure activity in the hippocampus within 10-20 min, as well as acute behavioral signs of complex partial seizures. We also have MRI evidence of hippocampal damage and histological evidence of synaptic reorganization in the hippocampus after such treatments. Two papers describing these results are in preparation. In "Dopaminergic and GABAergic Actions of Pallidal Discharge" (M. Anderson) my role has been to implant an access fiber for repeated drug application throughout several millimeters of the puta men. A paper describing the method was published in 1998. In "Neural Substrate of Learning" (D. Bowden), which involves electrical stimulation of the brain as a reward for learning a visuomotor task, I am responsible for platform implantations to enable the targeting of subcortical regions for electrical stimulation. Long-range plans include the implantation of an access fiber in prefrontal cortex to examine the effects of drug administration on learning. In "Computerized Brain Atlas for Macaca fascicularis" (D. Bowden) I designed and applied software to translate the structures and labels of Dr. Bowden's Template Atlas into a consolidated format compatible with operations for use on the Internet. The resulting drawings have been imported into a Geographic Information Systems software package and will soon be displayed on the Internet, where they will facilitate various database and display functions. FUNDING NIH grants RR00166, NS15017, LM06243, and MH01201. Dubach, M., Anderson, M.E., and Tresco, P.A. (1998) Extended local access fibers adjustable treatment of deep sites in the brain. Neurosci. Meth. 85:187-200.