Treating Parkinson's disease with deep brain stimulation

Parkinson's disease is a progressive disorder characterised by the loss of dopamine in a specific part of the subcortical brain called the substantial nigra of the basal ganglia. The basal ganglia is a key part of the body involved in motor control, and essentially acts as a gateway for new actions, resolving competitions between different actions. Its primary role is in movement initiation, controlling movement inhibition and excitation.

Whilst we're "resting", a lot is actually going on. Our basal ganglia works hard to keep us still, and as such there is strong inhibitory baseline activity. In people with Parkinson's, these inhibitions are reduced, resulting in involuntary tremors, caused by excess activity in the subthalamic nucleus and GPi.

Deep brain stimulation is one recent technological development in treating these tremors. It works by stimulating the subthalamic nucleus or GPi through the use of a micro-electrode inserted into these brain structures.

And the effects are astounding. It doesn't cure the disease, it doesn't stop its progression, and there are side effects. But the difference in quality of life pre-treatment and six months post-treatment is great to see. And it's fantastic to get a glimpse of the amazing outcomes research into biological psychology can produce.

Click here to see for yourself.

If you want to find out more, take a look here for one recent experiment outlining the effects of DBS for Parkinson's disease.

Why coffee makes you happy

Coffee is great. It gives you that buzz that you need to start the day, makes working a lot more tolerable, and is one of the world's favourite drinks. So, why do we love it so much?

Aside from the gorgeous taste of a caramel latte, the caffeine in coffee changes the way our body works. Many neurons which release neurotransmitters such as dopamine and adrenaline also release a self-inhibitor called adenosine, just so we don't get too much pleasure (dopamine), and our hearts don't start racing. (Thanks, adenosine!)

Yet, when we gulp down our caffeinated delights, we're inhibiting the effects of adenosine, meaning neurotransmitters such as adrenaline and dopamine are more effective. So, we get rushes of pleasure and your blood starts pumping quicker. Just like a mini-rollercoaster!

Not only this, but your energy levels increase because caffeine acts on cAMP, which is what controls glucose metabolism in your cells, inhibiting  the enzyme that normally breaks it down. That's what gives you your extra energy.

Yay for coffee!