Objective
Restless legs syndrome (RLS) is a sensorimotor disorder characterized by a distressing urge to move the legs and sometimes also other parts of the body, usually accompanied by a marked sense of discomfort or pain in the leg or other affected body part. Epidemiological studies in the white population suggest that RLS prevalence in adults' ranges between 5 and 15%. Despite the recent advances in the epidemiology, clinical definition and therapeutic management of the disorder, nowadays RLS still remains a misdiagnosed and poorly treated disorder.
The goal of our proposal is to elucidate pathophysiological mechanisms of the RLS, which still remain unclear, using magnetic resonance imaging. Our hypothesis is that presence of a subcortical dopaminergic dysfunction and regional brain iron insufficiency play a major role in RLS pathophysiology. To achieve our goal and test our hypothesis, we will use functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to investigate cerebral generators involved in the pathogenesis of RLS. Additionally we will measure iron concentration using T2 relaxometry. We will apply automatic segmentation tools to calculate brain activation and iron content in areas of the central dopaminergic system, particularly the striatonigral system and other areas like the red nucleus, the thalami, the mamillary bodies, the dentate nucleus, the tuber cinereum, the pituitary gland and the pineal gland.
Healthy volunteers and idiopathic RLS patients will participate before and after medication. fMRI studies will b e performed at night when RLS symptoms are most pronounced. Statistical and fMRI analysis will evaluate differences between groups and pharmacological effects and will correlate imaging data with standard neurological indices. We anticipate this study to lead to the development of a new protocol for optimal MR neuroimaging of RLS patients and provide new information into RLS pathophysiology yielding unique prospective information for RLS management.
Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
- medical and health sciences basic medicine pharmacology and pharmacy pharmaceutical drugs
- medical and health sciences health sciences public health epidemiology
- medical and health sciences basic medicine physiology pathophysiology
- engineering and technology medical engineering diagnostic imaging magnetic resonance imaging
- agricultural sciences agriculture, forestry, and fisheries agriculture horticulture vegetable growing root crops
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Programme(s)
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
Topic(s)
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Call for proposal
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
FP6-2004-MOBILITY-12
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Funding Scheme
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
IRG - Marie Curie actions-International re-integration grants
Coordinator
IOANNINA
Greece
The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.