Trial reportScientific reports2021
Stimulation of zona incerta selectively modulates pain in humans.
Trial report in Scientific reports, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 16 papers.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
16 citing papers in PubMed, 24 citations in OpenAlex.
- Mapping the topographic organization of the human zona incerta using diffusion MRI.bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2026Article
- Delta Opioid Receptors within the Cortico-Thalamic Circuitry Underlie Hyperactivity Induced by High-Dose Morphine.Advanced science (Weinheim, Baden-Wurttemberg, Germany) · 2026Article
- A GABAergic Projection from the Zona Incerta to the Rostral Ventromedial Medulla Modulates Descending Control of Neuropathic Pain.Brain sciences · 2026Article
- Activation of the zona incerta GABAergic circuit for the treatment of pain hypersensitivity in Parkinson's disease mice model.The journal of headache and pain · 2025Article
- Abnormal iron metabolism in the zona incerta in Parkinson's disease mice.Journal of neural transmission (Vienna, Austria : 1996) · 2025Article
- Article
- Zona incerta: from Parkinson's disease to addiction.Frontiers in neural circuits · 2025Article
- Dopaminergic Neurons in Zona Incerta Drives Appetitive Self-Grooming.Advanced science (Weinheim, Baden-Wurttemberg, Germany) · 2024Article
- Glutamatergic Neurons in the Zona Incerta Modulate Pain and Itch Behaviors in Mice.Molecular neurobiology · 2023Article
- Chemogenetic and optogenetic stimulation of zona incerta GABAergic neurons ameliorates motor impairment in Parkinson's disease.iScience · 2023Article
- Uncovering the brain-wide pattern of synaptic input to vasopressin-expressing neurons in the paraventricular nucleus of the hypothalamus.The Journal of comparative neurology · 2023Article
- Projections from the Rostral Zona Incerta to the Thalamic Paraventricular Nucleus Mediate Nociceptive Neurotransmission in Mice.Metabolites · 2023Article
- Dorsal subthalamic deep brain stimulation improves pain in Parkinson's disease.Frontiers in pain research (Lausanne, Switzerland) · 2023Article
- An inhibitory circuit from central amygdala to zona incerta drives pain-related behaviors in mice.eLife · 2022Article
- Microglial Engulfment of Spines in the Ventral Zona Incerta Regulates Anxiety-Like Behaviors in a Mouse Model of Acute Pain.Frontiers in cellular neuroscience · 2022Article
- Parvalbumin Neurons in Zona Incerta Regulate Itch in Mice.Frontiers in molecular neuroscience · 2022Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
8 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
Stimulation of zona incerta in rodent models has been shown to modulate behavioral reactions to noxious stimuli. Sensory changes observed in Parkinsonian patients with subthalamic deep brain stimulation suggest that this effect is translatable to humans. Here, we utilized the serendipitous placement of subthalamic deep brain stimulation leads in 6 + 5 Parkinsonian patients to directly investigate the effects of zona incerta stimulation on human pain perception. We found that stimulation at 20 Hz, the physiological firing frequency of zona incerta, reduces experimental heat pain by a modest but significant amount, achieving a 30% reduction in one fifth of implants. Stimulation at higher frequencies did not modulate heat pain. Modulation was selective for heat pain and was not observed for warmth perception or pressure pain. These findings provide a mechanistic explanation of sensory changes seen in subthalamic deep brain stimulation patients and identify zona incerta as a potential target for neuromodulation of pain.
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What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.