Benazzouz Abdelhamid

Biography

 Research themes: Normal and pathological motor Scientific expertise: dopamine; noradrenaline; serotonin; pre-clinical expertise; Parkinson disease ; animal models; integrated neurophysiology; basal ganglia                           Research: they developed a novel therapeutic approach to Parkinson's disease by high-frequency stimulation of the subthalamic nucleus in Parkinsonian monkeys by MPTP injection. The subthalamic nucleus is involved in the manifestation of motor symptoms by the hyperactivity of its glutamatergic neurons. This study paved the way for a new therapeutic approach which allowed permissive transfer to patients suffering from a severe form of Parkinson's disease. The first patients were operated in 1993 and the therapeutic benefits are still stable for the vast majority of patients. This therapeutic approach is currently practiced in a considerable number of centers in France and in the world. The success of this neurosurgical approach and the fact that it is reversible has made it currently used in other pathologies such as dystonia, epilepsy and obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). In parallel with this activity, we are interested in the functional mechanisms of this deep cerebral stimulation in animal models of the disease. In addition, they are interested in the involvement of extra-striatal dopaminergic receptors within the basal ganglia in the pathophysiology of Parkinson's disease. They are interested in the functional mechanisms of this deep cerebral stimulation in animal models of the disease. In addition, we are interested in the involvement of extra-striatal dopaminergic receptors within the basal 

Research Interest

 Neurology