The putamen is a cerebral structure located in the telencephalon highly involved in the regulation and control of movement and that together with the caudate nucleus forms the dorsal striatum, thus forming part of the basal ganglia. The putamen connects to many other structures such as the thalamus, the substantia nigra or the motor cortex and its neurons transmit neurotransmitters such as GABA or acetylcholine.
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The putamen is located in the forebrain next to the caudate nucleus, being the outermost part of the basal ganglia, made up of the striatum, of which the putamen, the substantia nigra, the nucleus accumbens and the subthalamic nucleus are part. This group of nuclei composed of gray matter and connected to the cerebral cortex, the thalamus and the brainstem have very important functions for survival such as the regulation of voluntary movement, the learning of skills or motivation. The putamen, in addition, together with the globe pallidus, forms the lenticular nucleus, an important nucleus for the control of motor skills and posture, as well as learning and motivation..
Thanks to its connections with different areas of the brain, the putamen participates and influences many important processes for the human being, such as motor control or learning. Some of the main functions of this structure are the following:
The putamen is very important for acquiring motor skills and participates both in the planning of movements, as well as in their execution and learning. According to some studies, this region also controls the movement of the limbs, in fact, in a study with primates, it was found that 50% of the monitored neurons of the putamen were related to arm movement tasks.
In other research with humans, it has been found that the greater the extent in the movement of people, the greater the activity of this area of the brain along with other areas such as the globe pallidus. This shows how the putamen is not only involved in movement but also in the integration of tasks working according to other structures. Furthermore, when the putamen and the caudate nucleus were inhibited in other studies through drugs, the learning of new sequential movements was deficient..
It seems that the putamen plays a large role in many learning processes. One of these is reinforcement learning, in which people learn certain behaviors through obtaining rewards. In this type of learning, dopamine plays an essential role and the basal ganglia are a fundamental part of the process..
It seems that this structure is also key to feeling the emotions of hatred and contempt. In a study at the University of London, MRI tests were performed on patients viewing images of people they found neutral and people they hated for some reason. The participants had to rate the images on a scale from high to low aversion. In the results, it was found that during contact with the image of the people who produced disgust, the activity of the putamen and the insula were activated. From this it follows that these structures are involved in the emotions of disgust and contempt that prepare the motor system to act in some way..
When brain function suffers from Parkinson's disease, the thalamus can be affected, leading to involuntary movements or tremors. This also occurs with other diseases such as Huntington's disease..
In addition, when there are disruptions in the putamen, it may be the case that the syndrome of tired legs occurs, which causes a sensation of painful jerks in the legs and a great need to move them. This disorder can be treated through medications, as well as adequate rest and certain dietary changes, such as eliminating caffeine..
In addition, the putamen is related to other disorders such as Tourette syndrome, schizophrenia, depression, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, some anxiety disorders or obsessive compulsive disorder, among others.
https://www.healthline.com/human-body-maps/putamen
https://www.medicinenet.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=11935
https://www.neuroscientificallychallenged.com/blog/know-your-brain-striatum
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