To compare structural alterations in the brains of Meige syndrome (MS) patients with those of healthy controls (HCs) by using surface-based morphometry (SBM) and compare structural differences between the brains of MS patients with sleep disorders and those of MS patients without sleep disorders.

We investigated cortical surface parameters in 42 MS patients and 30 HCs. T1-weighted images were acquired and processed using CAT12 to perform vertexwise between-group comparisons of cortical thickness, gyrification, cortical complexity and sulcus depth with validated quality control protocols. We also performed SBM to analyze data from 19 patients with sleep disorders and 23 patients without sleep disorders.

Compared with HCs, MS patients had differences in large clusters of cortical regions, especially in postcentral, precentral, superior frontal and paracentral thickness. Differences were also observed in the parietal and occipital areas. Among MS patients with and without sleep disorders, altered cortical complexity and sulcal depth were observed.

This study strongly suggested that MS patients have cortical structural abnormalities compared with HCs, thus elucidating the underlying pathophysiology of motor and nonmotor symptoms in MS patients.

Parkinson’s disease (PD) chronic L-Dopa treatment often triggers motor complications, such as L-Dopa-induced dyskinesias (LID). LID are reported to be associated with abnormal glutamatergic activity between the striatum and primary motor cortex (M1), resulting in M1 hyperactivation. Beneficial noninvasive brain stimulation (NIBS) paradigms were reported to normalize glutamatergic activity. The objective of the present study was thus to set up a NIBS paradigm in parkinsonian monkeys to investigate motor behavior under basal conditions and with L-Dopa treatment-inducing dyskinesias.

Motor behavior was investigated in five 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine (MPTP) dyskinetic female Macaca fascicularis monkey models of PD, allowing us to monitor the administration of NIBS and drugs. NIBS used were inhibitory protocols, that is, cathodal transcranial direct current stimulation (c-tDCS) and continuous theta-burst stimulation (cTBS). A procedure of three weeks was developed to progressively acclimate animals to the experimental conditions, equipment and noise of c-tDCS and cTBS before stimulating them with either vehicle or L-Dopa.

One session of c-tDCS with L-Dopa yielded no effect, whereas five sessions briefly reduced LID but decreased the duration of L-Dopa anti-PD effects. cTBS alone improved (decreased) parkinsonian scores as compared to sham stimulation or vehicle alone. Two sessions of cTBS with L-Dopa decreased LID without affecting L-Dopa anti-PD effects.

This is the first study testing c-tDCS and cTBS on the motor behavior of MPTP dyskinetic monkeys. As compared to medicated patients, MPTP monkeys offer the opportunity to evaluate NIBS after-effects in drug-free and LID conditions, which are critical in the search for new PD treatment.

Huntington’s disease (HD) is a rare (1-9/100 000), inherited disease characterized by an elongated CAG repeat on chromosome 4p, leading to a degeneration of neurons. Also, psychiatric symptoms are very common in the early stage and may appear before motor symptoms.

To characterize neuropsychiatric symptoms in a group of individuals with manifest or pre-motor Huntington’s disease in Medellín, Colombia.

Data obtained from clinical records of individuals with HD (motor-manifest or pre-motor with triplets count) evaluated for ENROLL-HD project in the Group of Neuroscience of Antioquia. We explored variables related to substances abuse, neuropsychiatric symptoms, the respective age of onset, sex, and triplet count when available.

Twenty-six (53%) were women, 8% had a familiar history of psychotic illness in a first-degree relative and 88% presented motor symptoms. Also, 59% had a history of depression, 53% irritability, 57% aggressiveness, 34% apathy, 29% perseverative/obsessive behavior, 14% psychosis, and 30% mild cognitive impairment. Ten individuals (20%) had motor without neuropsychiatric symptoms. Also, thirty-seven individuals (76%) presented motor and neuropsychiatric symptoms; of these, 41% had neuropsychiatric symptoms before motor symptoms. No psychiatric symptoms were associated with the use of alcohol, cigarettes, or drugs of abuse.

Neuropsychiatric symptoms are highly prevalent among individuals with HD and studies oriented to create relevant knowledge for the development of advice oriented to people with this disease are necessary.

No significant relationships.