The basal ganglia

Abstract

For a considerable time, the basal ganglia were thought to be primarily concerned with movement and balance, and therefore were not considered to have the same importance in research in psychiatric disorders in the same manner that other brain regions were. However, the expansion of our understanding of basal ganglia function to include cognitive, executive and emotional functions as well as motor has led to more interest in these structures. This is particularly evident with the origin of the D2-mediated nigrostriatal pathway arising in the substantia nigra, a key output nucleus of the basal ganglia, being the target of modern anti-psychotic drugs. Despite a renewed interest in these nuclei, there has been very little pathological research conducted upon them, although what there is does suggest similar cellular disruption in schizophrenia as are observed in other brain regions.