Alexandra Nelson

In this new preprint, Emily Twedell (PhD student) and colleagues identify a functional role for the inhibitory synapses between striatal projection neurons -- shaping striatal ensembles to promote healthy action selection. biorxiv.org/content/10.110…

If you are a student or postdoc, we encourage you to also apply to the associated Parkinson's Gordon Seminar (GRS). Held the day before the conference, the GRS helps trainees learn more about the field and network to gear up for the main meeting.grc.org/parkinson-s-di…

We are excited to announce the 2025 Parkinson's Gordon Conference, which will be held in June 2025 in New Hampshire! Our speakers will touch on pathogenesis and pathophysiology, at cellular/molecular and circuit levels. We hope to see you there! grc.org/parkinson-s-di…

Xiaowen and I have had great support on this project from the @ParkinsonDotOrg, @NINDSfunding, @ASAP_Research

Congratulations to Nelson Lab postdoctoral fellow Xiaowen Zhuang on her preprint describing a new mouse model of Impulse Control Disorder in Parkinson's Disease! biorxiv.org/content/10.110…

Xiaowen found that parkinsonian mice treated with a dopamine agonist medication developed impulsive behavior on a delay discounting task, similar to what is seen in Parkinson's. She went on to show that inhibition of striatal indirect pathway neurons is a key mechanism.

ASAP Team Edwards gathered at UC San Francisco to share our science and plan the next steps for our team! @KhaliqLab @LernerLab @ASAP_Research

@AllyGirasole @NeuroMikeRyan @RoseCreed1 @sschamiloglu @e_twedell @didiaam @OliviaBarnhill1

SFN Nelson Lab Lunch! Look how we’ve grown. So proud of alumni and current lab members!

Compared to their neighbors, these neurons are more sensitive to dopamine and have stronger excitatory synaptic input from the motor cortex and thalamus. Their results suggest significant heterogeneity (functionally and physiologically) within a single striatal cell type (3/3).

In this manuscript, Mike and Ally used an activity-dependent tool to label a subset of striatal neurons that are activated during dyskinesia, then investigated why these neurons have exceptionally high firing during dyskinesia (2/3).

Congratulations to @NeuroMikeRyan and @AllyGirasole for their new manuscript on striatal activity and connectivity in a mouse model of Parkinson's Disease and levodopa-induced dyskinesia. Thanks to our collaborators at NIH, including Chip Gerfen! biorxiv.org/content/10.110…

UCSF is hiring new Neuroscience faculty! If you study addiction, neuromodulation, or related brain circuitry, we'd love to see your application for this position: aprecruit.ucsf.edu/JPF04147

Join us for the 2023 Parkinson's GRC! Our program of amazing speakers from all over the world is now posted, and we encourage scientists interested in the basal ganglia and Parkinson's disease to apply: grc.org/parkinson-s-di…

Congratulations to Selin, Kevin, and Jennifer on their exciting new preprint on how antipsychotic medications might work!

Proud to be working with @MaluTansey organizing the 2023 Parkinson's GRC in Switzerland! Excited to have many junior scientists join us, share their amazing work, and network. Sign up soon and submit an abstract!

Happy to share our latest study from the @BJunDing lab recently published in @NeuroCellPress! We show that motor learning selectively induces synaptic plasticity at inputs and outputs of behavior-relevant neurons in motor cortex. cell.com/neuron/fulltex…

@guy_bouvier @CNRS @Inserm @AgenceRecherche @NeuroPSI_saclay Congratulations! Well-deserved recognition for such a creative and careful scientist.

@NeuroBender In this paper, Jon and team investigated how subthalamic nucleus deep brain stimulation might alleviate motor symptoms in a mouse model of Parkinson's Disease, using electrical stimulation and in vivo GCaMP fiber photometry

Congratulations to Nelson and Bender Lab (@NeuroBender) members, led by former graduate student Jon Schor on our manuscript on deep brain stimulation just published in eLife! doi.org/10.7554/eLife.…