Impaired reach-to-grasp kinematics in parkinsonian patients relates to dopamine-dependent, subthalamic beta bursts

Abstract

Excessive beta-band oscillations in the subthalamic nucleus are key neural features of Parkinson’s disease. Yet the distinctive contributions of beta low and high bands, their dependency on striatal dopamine, and their correlates with movement kinematics are unclear. Here, we show that the movement phases of the reach-to-grasp motor task are coded by the subthalamic bursting activity in a maximally-informative beta high range. A strong, three-fold correlation linked beta high range bursts, imbalanced inter-hemispheric striatal dopaminergic tone, and impaired inter-joint movement coordination. These results provide new insight into the neural correlates of motor control in parkinsonian patients, paving the way for more informative use of beta-band features for adaptive deep brain stimulation devices.