Emanuela Brun Psychologist Msc

The substantia nigra is a relatively small but extremely important structure located in the midbrain. It is closely connected with the basal ganglia and plays a major role in movement, learning, action selection, motivation, and dopamine signalling. Its name literally means “black substance,” referring to its characteristically dark appearance in the human brain. That dark appearance comes largely from neuromelanin, a pigment that accumulates in many dopamine-producing neuron