Movement Disorders

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Facilities | Clinical Trials | Research | Fellowship | Contribute

UCLA first established its Movement Disorders Clinic in the 1960's under the direction of Dr. Charles Markham. The program has grown and developed into a multidisciplinary comprehensive program to address the diversity of needs of both patients and referring physicians. Our team consists of specialists in adult movement disorders, botulinum toxin administration, and stereotactic neurosurgery to provide state-of-the-art diagnosis and therapy for both adult and pediatric patients with movement disorders. In addition to patient education, medications, physical and occupational therapy, UCLA offers advanced techniques in neuroradiology, PET, stereotactic surgery and botulinum toxin administration.

We also have a Wilson and Huntington’s Disease Centers of Excellence and have one of 6 Parkinson's Disease Research, Education and Clinical Centers (PADRECC) at the Veterans Administration Medical Center. In addition to patient care, clinical and basic science research are also priorities of the Movement Disorders Program. We have established a large team of basic scientists and clinical researchers with the mission to find the cause of the disease and discover novel treatments that will eventually result in a cure.

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Facilities

The Movement Disorders Program is based out of UCLA and the West Los Angeles Veterans Administration Medical Center. At UCLA, patients are seen at our outpatient facility in 300 Medical Plaza. Administrative offices are located on the A floor of the Reed Neurological Research Center (RNRC). Offices for fellows are also located in RNRC.

The UCLA Center for Neurotherapeutics is located in 300 Medical Plaza where all clinical trials are performed. At the VA, patients are seen in the outpatient clinic in the main hospital. Administrative offices are located in building 206. UCLA and the VA offer comprehensive clinic and research resources including the Brain Mapping Center (PET, fMRI, TMS) and inpatient and outpatient rehabilitation. UCLA has one of the largest neuroscience research communities in the world with 225 members of the Brain Research Institute.

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Clinical Trials

Our Clinical Trials
Several members of the Movement Disorders Faculty perform clinical research. All studies are performed in the Neurology Department’s dedicated clinical trials center (Center for Neurotherapeutics and the Chen Center for Translational Research for Parkinson’s disease and Related Disorders). A variety of studies are currently underway for Parkinson’s disease, Huntington’s disease, PSP and Wilson’s disease. Some of these studies are investigator initiated while others are industry sponsored.   Drs. Bronstein, Bordelon and Subramanian are members of the Parkinson’s Study Group (PSG) and Dr. Bordelon is a member of the Huntington’s Study Group (HSG). 

For information, please contact Diane Yang at: 310-206-3356 or email [email protected]

• All studies for Parkinson’s disease >
• All studies for all diseases >

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Research

Jeff Bronstein MD, PhD
Publications
Dr Bronstein’s research is focused on finding the causes of Parkinson’s disease (PD) and finding better treatments for PD and other movement disorders. His lab has developed novel zebrafish models to determine the mechanisms by which environmental toxins alter the risk of developing PD. Specifically, he has found several pesticides interfere with protein degradation pathways (the ubiquitin-proteasome system and autophagy) and aldehyde dehydrogenase (ALDH) activity. We are also studying the effects of diesel exhaust on PD-related pathways. Dr. Bronstein also collaborates with Dr. Beate Ritz, an epidemiologist, to study environmental and genetic factors leading to PD in a large cohort in the Central Valley of California. Another focus of Dr. Bronstein’s research is finding better treatments for PD and other movement disorders. He performs pre-clinical trials on experiment drugs in his lab using zebrafish and cellular models. He also performs clinical trials testing new therapies to control symptoms and devises that better characterize motor function remotely. He is all testing new medications to treat Wilson’s disease.

Carlos Portera-Cailliau, MD, PhD
Imaging the assembly and plasticity of cortical circuits with two-photon microscopy
How are cortical circuits established during brain development? What are the mechanisms of structural and functional plasticity triggered by neurodegeneration (e.g., stroke, Parkinson's disease)? We want to answer these and other questions about cortical development and plasticity using 2-photon microscopy in vivo and in brain slices together with electrophysiology and molecular biology. One goal is to investigate the mechanisms of synaptogenesis and how dendritic filopodia mature into dendritic spines, which has implications for various neuropsychiatric disorders such as fragile X syndrome. Here we use 2-photon imaging in vivo and image transgenic mice that express the green fluorescent protein (GFP). We also use in utero electroporation to transfect neural progenitors with GFP or other genes of interest. Another project is aimed at understanding how coordinated neuronal activity arises within developing networks of neurons in cortex and how activity may be affected by Parkinson disease. We use in vivo 2-photon calcium imaging to record and analyze the spatiotemporal patterns of activity within ensembles of neurons, as measured with fluorescent calcium indicator dyes such as Oregon green BAPTA-1AM or Fluo-4 AM. We are also interested in mechanisms of plasticity and neural repair in peri-infarct cortex after stroke. Using a middle cerebral artery occlusion model of stroke in mice, we carry out chronic in vivo imaging of dendritic spines and axons over periods of months in GFP-expressing mice to find out which neuronal structures participate in functional recovery after stroke.

Carlos Portera-Cailliau, MD, PhD
Assistant Professor
UCLA
Departments of Neurology and Neurobiology
RNRC-A145
710 Westwood Plaza
Los Angeles, CA 90095
Tel: 310-206-4396 Fax. 310-206-9819
Porterera Lab

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Fellowship

UCLA Movement Disorder Fellowship Program

Goals and Objectives:
UCLA has a two-year Movement Disorders Fellowship designed to prepare fellows for clinical and research careers in this subspecialty. They participate in the following weekly clinics at the UCLA Westwood campus: General Movement Disorders, Deep Brain Stimulation, Botulinum toxin, Huntington disease; and at the West LA Veterans Administration Medical Center: General Movement Disorders and Deep Brain Stimulation. They participate in research projects throughout their 2 years.

Training Curriculum Year 1: The majority of time is spent in clinical training with an average of two half-days per week allowed for independent research

Fellows are present in the Operating Room (OR) for all DBS cases both at the VA and at UCLA.
UCLA DBS clinic is multidisciplinary with faculty and fellows from both Neurology and Neurosurgery present. Physician assistants also participate in DBS patient care. All new evaluations are performed jointly with Neurology and Neurosurgery. New cases undergo videotaped ON/OFF MDS-UPDRS evaluations. Joint conference is held to determine DBS eligibility, staging, target and overall patient management. New programming and follow-up programming are conducted during this clinic as well.

Year 2: This year is flexible depending on the fellow’s interest and career plans. DBS clinic remains a requirement.

Method of Evaluation: All fellows are evaluated biannually by all supervising faculty (Six Movement Disorders faculty)

Impact of Training/Outcomes:
All fellows graduating from the UCLA Movement Disorders clinic are prepared to launch successful, independent clinical careers in this subspecialty. Several Graduates are faculty at prestigious institutions including UCLA, UCSF, Harvard, Stanford, UCSD and USC among others. Other graduates have chosen a career in private practice and industry utilizing the skills obtained during fellowship.

Duration: Two years
Director: Jeff Bronstein, MD, PhD
Prerequisites: Neurology or Neuro-Surgery Residency; California License (or eligible) and US citizen or permanent resident (due to our funding source)
Salary: UCLA PGY V equivalent
Apply through SF Match
Typical Source of Funding: PADRECC (VA)
Number of Positions funded per year: 2
Is Program Conducted Entirely Within The Department of Neurology? Yes

Inquires:
Jeff Bronstein MD, PhD
Director of Movement Disorders
UCLA School of Medicine
Department of Neurology
710 Westwood Plaza
Los Angles, CA 90095
Phone: 310-206-9799
FAX: 310-206-9819
Email: [email protected]

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Contribute

Donations

A gift to the Movement Disorders Program directly supports novel investigations of more effective treatments and preventive therapies.

Tribute gifts in memory or honor of a loved one creates a lasting legacy. Many people encourage memorial contributions in lieu of flowers or a wedding gift.

To multiply the impact of your donation through a matching gift from your company, visit:  matchinggifts.com/ucla/

Additionally, gifts may be made in the form of a planned gift including appreciated securities, bequests, life income annuities, or trusts. For more information please call: 310-794-2334 or email: [email protected]

Donations in the form of a check should be payable to the "UCLA Foundation".
Please write "Movement Disorders Program" in the memo line and mail to:

Jeff Bronstein, MD
Director of Movement Disorders
UCLA Department of Neurology
710 Westwood Plaza, RNRC
Los Angeles, CA 90095-1769.

To give online, please go to:  giving.ucla.edu/Neurology

Thank you for supporting UCLA Neurology!

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