Deep-brain stimulation may improve movement in people with Parkinson's disease by reducing abnormally strong coupling of electrical activity in the brain.

Implanted electrodes are used to treat some brain disorders, particularly Parkinson's disease. Coralie de Hemptinne at the University of California, San Francisco, and her colleagues recorded electrical potentials in the motor cortex of 23 people with Parkinson's who were undergoing surgery to implant electrodes into their brains. The researchers found that when they switched the electrodes on, the coupling of electrical activity in the motor cortex was reduced, and that the level of uncoupling correlated with the degree to which the patients' movements improved.

The authors say that the results could inform the design of improved devices for deep-brain stimulation.

Nature Neurosci. http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/nn.3997 (2015)