Figure 1.

Anatomical pathways connecting the cerebellum with the basal ganglia. The figure refers only to the noncanonical pathways described in this review. The traditional cerebello-thalamo-cortical pathways are omitted. The DCN of the cerebellum connect with the DS via the thalamic nuclei (CL and PF), and with the NAc and DS via the VTA and the SNc, respectively. The thalamic pathway conveys fast glutamatergic signals to the striatum, contributing to motor coordination. Projections via the VTA and SNc allow the cerebellum to directly contribute to DA release in the DS and the NAc. The VTA, as well as the thalamus, also projects to the cerebral cortex. VTA cortical projections suggest that the cerebellum can directly contribute to cortical DA levels via direct projections to the VTA (this connection is not discussed in this review).