ArticleThe journal of headache and pain2025
Activation of the zona incerta GABAergic circuit for the treatment of pain hypersensitivity in Parkinson's disease mice model.
Article in The journal of headache and pain, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.
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2 citing papers in PubMed.
- Pain in Parkinson's disease: bridging pathophysiology, clinical features, and personalized management.The journal of headache and pain · 2026Review
- A GABAergic Projection from the Zona Incerta to the Rostral Ventromedial Medulla Modulates Descending Control of Neuropathic Pain.Brain sciences · 2026Article
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Abstract
backgroundPain is a prevalent and frequently undertreated non-motor symptom in Parkinson's disease (PD), affecting approximately 40% to 85% of patients. The zona incerta (ZI) is primarily an inhibitory subthalamic region involved in nociceptive neurotransmission. Previous studies demonstrated that the ZI is an important gamma-aminobutyric acid-ergic (GABAergic) source to the ventral tegmental area (VTA), but whether the ZI-VTA pathway participates in PD pain processing is still unclear. Given that deep brain stimulation targeting the ZI has demonstrated beneficial effects on pain perception in PD patients, we hypothesized that GABAergic signaling within the ZI may play a critical role in PD pain hypersensitivity.
methodsMale C57BL/6 mice and Vgat-Cre mice were used in the experiments. A unilateral PD mouse model was established through the injection of 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA) into the striatum. We performed von Frey test and hot/cold plate tests to assess nociceptive behavior in PD mice. We then employed fiber photometry, chemogenetic, and optogenetic approaches to investigate the roles of ZI GABAergic neurons and ZI
resultsActivation of ZI GABAergic neurons alleviated pain hypersensitivity in PD mouse model, whereas inhibition of these neurons was sufficient to induce pain hypersensitivity in control naïve mice. Furthermore, we demonstrated that projections from GABAergic neurons in the ZI to VTA are involved in regulating pain associated with PD. Chemogenetic and optogenetic activation of the ZI
conclusionsOur results indicate that the ZI GABAergic neurons and their downstream projections to the VTA play crucial roles in modulating pain processing under both physiological conditions and during PD states. This research offers fresh perspectives on the PD pain mechanism. Considering our previous report indicating that stimulation of ZI GABAergic neurons improved motor performance in 6-OHDA-lesioned mice, we propose that the ZI may serve a dual regulatory function concerning both motor behavior and pain response associated with PD.
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