In Your Classroom: "Deep Brain Stimulation"

by Sharon Radford     Department: In Your Classroom

Watching the clip, "Deep Brain Stimulation," with a class provides opportunities to explore brain function from several different perspectives.

First, students might want to know what causes these movement disorders.  Are they all inherited, like the essential tremor suffered by Morris Porter?  Many are, and some are dominant, and these often don't show up until after the child-bearing years.  Such questions can lead into a discussion of genetic testing and bioethical considerations.  If a parent has such a dominant disorder, then the probability of inheriting the disorder is 50%, and the probability of passing the disorder on to one of one's own children is also 50%.  Would one want to know one's future in such a case?  What would such knowledge mean for decisions about having children?

In order to have an informed discussion, students need good information.  The "Deep Brain Stimulation" episode brings home what life is like with such a disorder and why someone might choose a potentially risky cure.  One might also consider the effect of the disorder on other members of the family.  Who will be the caretaker?  How expensive is the care or treatment?  Does answering these questions change a decision about whether or not to have genetic testing.

Good resources for information about movement disorders, or ataxias, can be found at the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke website.  In addition, the Society for Neuroscience offers a rich information resource at their outreach site.

Second, when we teach the brain, we generally talk about the different lobes of the cerebrum, and discuss the cerebellum's role in coordination, but we don't often delve into the deeper regions of the brain in much detail. The thalamus and hippocampus get mentioned in passing, and we often don't have time to discuss other neurotransmitters than acetylcholine.  The basal ganglia hardly get mentioned at all unless one is doing a more comprehensive study of the brain.  I often have students do individual reports, which is one way to extend the scope of an introductory course.

For information about the basal ganglia and basal ganglia dysfunction, go to the medical encyclopedia at Medline.  This site provides a wealth of information on the topic as does this site from Harvard whichis an MRI atlas of the brain, so that students can see the structures themselves.

Additional WIRED Science Video Segments
Don't forget to check out our Video Section for other segments from WIRED Science that you can use in your classroom.

Tags: Health, Neurotechnology

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