bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Trifluoperazine blocks GABA-gated chloride currents in cultured chick spinal cord neurons
Authors: Yang J. , Zorumski C. F.
Published: December 2017

1. The effects of trifluoperazine (TFP) on gamma-aminobutyric acid- (GABA) gated chloride currents were investigated using cultured chick embryonic spinal cord neurons (SCN) and gigaseal patch clamp recording techniques. 2. TFP showed a dose-dependent attenuation of GABA responses with half-maximal block near 9 microM. The GABA antagonism was noncompetitive and voltage dependent with greater block at hyperpolarized potentials. 3. At 10 microM, GABA induced little desensitization in response to prolonged applications in the absence of TFP. At 100 microM, GABA responses desensitized with a time constant near 27 s. Coapplication of TFP did not alter the lack of desensitization to 10 microM GABA but revealed a second, faster component (time constant approximately 0.7 s) to the attenuation at 100 microM GABA. 4. Steady-state fluctuation analysis of the macroscopic GABA-gated current gave a power spectrum that was described by a simple Lorentzian function. The corner frequency of fluctuations to GABA [34.6 +/- 7.3 (SE) Hz] remained unchanged during simultaneous application of GABA and TFP (33.0 +/- 8.5 Hz), indicating that TFP does not alter the average GABA channel open duration. 5. Single-channel recording from isolated outside-out membrane patches showed GABA-gated chloride events with a primary conductance of 26 pS and a minor component (representing less than 5% of all events) of 10 pS. With simultaneous application of GABA and TFP, event amplitudes remained unchanged but the frequency of opening was decreased. 6. The distribution of the main conductance channel open times were well described by the sum of two exponentials with time constants of 0.82 +/- 0.18 and 7.4 +/- 2.0 ms. These time constants were not significantly altered by 50 microM TFP. 7. TFP, at 100 microM, attenuated responses to (% of control): GABA (7.5 +/- 2.3), glycine (15.4 +/- 5.5), and glutamate (64.5 +/- 5.5). The proconvulsant tendency of TFP, in part, may be due to the greater block of responses to inhibitory than to excitatory transmitters.
Effects of baclofen on transient neurons in the mudpuppy retina: electrogenic and network actions
Authors: Bai S. H. , Slaughter M. M.
Published: December 2017

1. Baclofen increases transient light responses of amacrine and ganglion cells despite acting as a classical inhibitory transmitter to both hyperpolarize and shunt these cells. 2. This effect seems to occur at the level of the inner retina and appears not to be due to an additional input from bipolar cells. 3. In some transient cells baclofen increases the total amplitude of the light response but does not change the peak potential of the light evoked EPSP. In these cells, the baclofen-induced enhancement can be accounted for by an increase in driving force of the excitatory postsynaptic potential (EPSP) resulting from the hyperpolarization. 4. However, in other cells the peak of the light response after baclofen application is greater, which cannot be accounted for by a change in driving force. This effect of baclofen can be mimicked by a blockers of gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) and glycine, suggesting that in these cells baclofen's enhancement is due in part to network effects resulting in a removal of sustained inhibition. 5. Therefore, the paradoxical effect of an inhibitory transmitter producing an enhancement of synaptic responses seems due to at least two mechanisms. 6. The results indicate that some transient cells receive significant tonic inhibition which limits their response amplitude in a push-pull type mechanism, but other cells are not under this inhibitory control process.
Whole-cell patch-clamp analysis of voltage-dependent calcium conductances in cultured embryonic rat hippocampal neurons
Authors: Meyers D. E. , Barker J. L.
Published: December 2017

1. Voltage-dependent calcium currents in embryonic (E18) hippocampal neurons cultured for 1-14 days were investigated using the whole-cell patch-clamp technique. 2. Calcium currents were isolated by removing K+ from both the internal and external solutions. In most recordings the external solution contained tetrodotoxin, tetraethylammonium ions, and low concentrations of Na+, whereas the internal solution contained the large cations and anions, N-methyl-D-glucamine and methanesulphonate, and an adenosine 5'-triphosphate (ATP) regenerating system (Forscher and Oxford, 1985) to retard “run-down” of Ca currents. 3. Under these conditions, the sustained inward current triggered during depolarizing steps was enhanced when extracellular [Ca2+] ([Ca2+]0) was raised from 2 to 10 mM and abolished when [Ca2+]0 was lowered to 0.1 mM or by addition of Co2+ ions. These results indicate that the inward current was carried primarily by Ca2+ ions and was designated ICa. This current may be comparable to the “high-voltage-activated” Ca current described in other preparations. 4. In cells cultured for 1-3 days, ICa was small or absent (less than 20 pA for cells 1 day in culture and less than 80 pA for cells 3 days in culture). Although ICa decayed considerably during depolarizing steps, there was little evidence of the transient calcium current (T current) that was recorded in approximately 40% of cells cultured longer than 6 days. Maximal (i.e., the largest) ICa increased from 20 to 80 pA in 1- to 3-day cells to 150–450 pA in cells cultured for longer than 6 days. 5. The decay of ICa elicited by depolarizations from holding potentials of -60 mV or more negative was usually greatest for the maximal ICa. Replacement of extracellular Ca2+ (4 mM) with Ba2+ (2 mM) resulted in a substantial decrease in the extent of decay of ICa and a shift of the I-V relation in the hyperpolarizing direction. 6. Qualitative data obtained from experiments in which different levels of internal Ca2+ buffering were employed demonstrated that, on average, the decay of ICa was reduced as the capacity and/or rate of buffering was increased. The mean decay of ICa in cells buffered with 5 mM 1,2-bis(o-aminophenoxy)ethane-N,N,N',N'-tetraacetic acid (BAPTA) was 9 +/- 7 (SD) %, (n = 12) and 25 +/- 12%, (n = 12) for cells buffered with the same concentration of ethyleneglycol bis(beta-aminoethyl ether)-N,N,N',N'-tetraacetic acid (EGTA).(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)
Muscle afferent contribution to control of paw shakes in normal cats
Authors: Prochazka A. , Hulliger M. , Trend P. , Llewellyn M. , Durmuller N.
Published: December 2017

1. The discharge of various hindlimb muscle afferents was recorded during paw shakes in normal cats with the use of floating dorsal root electrodes. 2. Muscle spindle group Ia-afferents and tendon organ group Ib-afferents fired during muscle lengthening, reaching very high peak discharge rates and then silencing at or shortly after the onset of shortening. The timing of Ia firing was consistent with the predictions of a linear model as well as the responses of Ia endings subjected to identical length variations in separate anesthetized cats. 3. In the latter “reconstruction” experiments, waxing and waning dynamic fusimotor action straddling whole paw-shake sequences gave the most consistent matches with the data from the normal cats. The reproducibility of the inferred fusimotor action justifies the inclusion of paw shakes as a class of movement in which fusimotor set is high. 4. The peak ensemble Ia activity from single hindlimb muscles was estimated to be approximately 20 kiloimpulses/s (Kips). Ankle extensor and hamstrings length variations were nearly in phase in the first cycles of a paw-shake sequence. From published data on spindle populations in these muscles, this indicated that peak Ia input to the spinal cord exceeded 0.2 megaimpulses/s (Mips). 5. The phase relationship between origin-to-insertion muscle length and Ia firing during paw shakes was little affected by doubling or tripling the moment of inertia of the foot. We argue that this refutes the notion that in paw shakes phase reversals occur between muscle fibers and tendons in the muscles studied. 6. Inertial loading of the foot led to small but significant reductions in mean paw-shake frequency. This is consistent with an afferent contribution to the generation of these movements. 7. We conclude that in paw shakes in normal cats, the CNS “chooses” to sensitize Ia-afferents to muscle length variations by increasing dynamic fusimotor action. The resulting ensemble Ia input is very large and is likely to play a significant role in reflexly shaping the alpha-motoneuronal activity responsible for the paw shakes.
Deficits in reaction times and movement times as correlates of hypokinesia in monkeys with MPTP-induced striatal dopamine depletion
Authors: Schultz W. , Studer A. , Romo R. , Sundstrom E. , Jonsson G. , Scarnati E.
Published: December 2017

1. We quantitatively assessed deficits in the initiation and execution of arm movements occurring after destruction of nigrostriatal dopamine neurons by systemic administration of MPTP (1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine) (Sigma). Three monkeys performed a reaction time task in which they reached toward a single and constant target for food reward. 2. After administration of MPTP, all three monkeys showed hypokinesia necessitating dopamine precursor or receptor agonist treatment. The partial recovery of one animal from initial akinesia after 19 days permitted discontinuation of dopaminergic drug therapy, although marked hypokinesia remained present. The two other animals displayed additional, intermittent phases of rigidity and activation tremor and needed continuous dopaminergic drug therapy for most of the postlesion period. 3. Administration of MPTP significantly prolonged EMG reaction time in prime mover muscles and arm movement reaction time by 47-225% and 18-129%, respectively, on the six sides of the three animals, compared with control measurements before the lesion. EMG and arm movement reaction time increased over consecutive trials in most sessions comprising 110–130 movements, the first 20 movements showing almost normal values. The delay time between onsets of EMG and arm movement showed unsystematic changes. These deficits in movement initiation were observed both with and without dopamine precursor therapy. They lasted during the whole testing period of several months. 4. Linear correlations between arm movement onset and EMG onset in the two prime mover muscles, the extensor digitorum communis and the biceps, showed coefficients of mostly 0.7–0.9, both before and after MPTP. These data suggest that the temporal relationship between onsets of arm movement and EMG were not substantially affected by MPTP. 5. Arm movement time was divided into two phases. The duration of movement between the resting key and the target, a small food-containing box located ahead of the animal, was denoted as reaching movement time. The following hand manipulation inside the food box was measured as box movement time. After MPTP, both measures were significantly prolonged by 10-103% and 12–251%, respectively, on the six sides of the three monkeys. These deficits in movement execution were observed both with and without dopaminergic drug therapy and during the whole testing period. 6. Task performance after MPTP treatment was studied in one monkey in the absence of dopaminergic drug therapy. EMG and arm movement reaction times recovered partially over several weeks, while the prolongations in reaching and box movement times remained unchanged.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)
Tachykinins modulate multiple ionic conductances in voltage-clamped rat spinal dorsal horn neurons
Authors: Murase K. , Ryu P. D. , Randic M.
Published: December 2017

1. The membrane actions of substance P (SP) and a related tachykinin, neurokinin A (NKA), have been investigated by means of a single-electrode, voltage-clamp technique in the immature rat dorsal horn neurons using an in vitro spinal cord slice preparation. 2. When the membrane potential was held at the resting level of between -75 and -55 mV, bath application of SP or NKA (10(-7) to 10(-5) M, for 1-3 min) induced an inward shift in the holding current lasting several minutes. The magnitude of this effect varied between 10 and 400 pA depending on the concentration of the peptides and the holding potential. 3. When a dorsal horn neuron was held at the resting level and subjected to 1-s depolarizing commands to membrane potentials between -60 and -35 mV, slow inward relaxations and inward tail currents, the latter on repolarization to the holding potential, were recorded. During the tachykinin-induced inward shift in the holding current, the inward relaxation and the tail current were augmented in a dose-related manner. 4. The SP-induced augmentation of the slow inward relaxation and the inward tail current is likely to be due to the enhancement of the activation of the Ca2+ current, because the effect was present, and even augmented in a zero-Ca2+, Ba2+-containing solution, it was reduced or completely abolished by zero-Ca2+, Co2+-, or Mg2+-containing solutions and is largely independent of the changes in external Na+, K+, or Cl- ions. Moreover, in the presence of the K+-channel blocker, tetraethylammonium (TEA), the effect is increased. 5. Depolarizing voltage commands to potentials positive to -35 mV evoked a large, outward K+ current response in the dorsal horn neurons, which was in part Ca2+-sensitive. The outward current response was augmented by SP. The SP effect persists, although being reduced in a zero-Ca2+, Ba2+- or Co2+-containing solutions. 6. In a zero-Ca2+ solution containing Co2+ and TEA, the augmentation of the Ca2+ current and the outward K+ current by SP was abolished. However, the SP-induced increase in a Ca2+-sensitive, voltage-insensitive conductance remained, although being reduced, and the response showed a reversal at about -28 mV. This current may be a result of a tachykinin-activated nonspecific increase in cationic permeability of the membrane of dorsal horn neurons, because the current is reduced by more than one-half when Na+ or Ca2+ is removed from the bathing medium.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)
Effects of low concentrations of 4-aminopyridine on CA1 pyramidal cells of the hippocampus
Authors: Perreault P. , Avoli M.
Published: December 2017

1. Intracellular and extracellular recording techniques were used to study the effects of bath application of 4-aminopyridine (4-AP) on pyramidal cells of the CA1 subfield of rat hippocampal slices maintained in vitro. The concentration of 4-AP used in most experiments was 50 microM. However, similar results were obtained with a concentration ranging from 5 to 100 microM. 2. Following 4-AP application, cells impaled with K-acetate-filled microelectrodes hyperpolarized by an average of 2.6 mV (from -68.7 to -71.3 mV, P less than or equal to 0.01). This change was accompanied by the appearance of high-frequency spontaneous hyperpolarizations. Conversely, when KCl-filled microelectrodes were used, an average depolarization of 5.8 mV [from -73.1 to -67.3 mV, not significant (NS)] associated with the occurrence of repetitive depolarizing potentials was observed. In both cases, these changes were concomitant with a small decrease in membrane input resistance, which was statistically significant only for cells impaled with K-acetate-filled microelectrodes. When synaptic transmission was blocked by tetrodotoxin (TTX), 4-AP induced in cells studied with K-acetate microelectrodes an average depolarization of 2.4 mV (from -62.8 to -60.4 mV, P less than or equal to 0.01) accompanied by a small increase in input resistance (from 32.0 to 35.8 M omega, P less than or equal to 0.05). High-frequency spontaneous potentials failed to occur under these conditions. During 4-AP application, the threshold and the latency of action potentials elicited by a depolarizing current pulse increased in 36% of the neurons studied (n = 14). 3. The amplitude of the stratum (s.) radiatum-induced excitatory postsynaptic potential (EPSP) was augmented by 4-AP. Both the early and late inhibitory postsynaptic potentials (IPSPs) evoked by orthodromic stimuli were also increased in amplitude and duration. In addition, a late (peak latency, 150-600 ms) and long-lasting (duration, 600-1,500 ms) depolarizing potential appeared between the early and the late IPSPs and progressively increased until it partially masked these hyperpolarizations. This long-lasting depolarization (LLD) could also be induced by antidromic stimulation, although in this case it was preceded by an additional, fast-rising, brief depolarization. 4. A similar brief depolarization preceded the orthodromically induced LLD in 69% of the neurons bathed in the presence of 4-AP. The average value of the peak latency of this potential was 62 +/- 27 (SD) ms for orthodromic and 110 +/- 70 ms for antidromic responses.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)
Physiological and pharmacological analysis of suppressive rod-cone in Necturus retina
Authors: Eysteinsson T. , Frumkes T. E.
Published: December 2017

Page 866: T. Eysteinsson and T. E. Frumkes. The correct title of the article should be: “Physiological and pharmacological analysis of suppressive rod-cone interaction in Necturus retina.”
Phosphatidylinositol system's role in serotonin-induced facilitation at the crayfish neuromuscular junction
Authors: Dixon D. , Atwood H. L.
Published: December 2017

1. In a crustacean neuromuscular preparation, the walking leg opener muscle of the freshwater crayfish Procambarus clarkii, application of serotonin (1 microM) produces presynaptic depolarization and long-lasting facilitation of excitatory postsynaptic potentials (EPSPs). The frequency of spontaneously released transmitter quanta also increases. Facilitation of evoked EPSPs declines after serotonin application in two phases. 2. Serotonin-induced facilitation was examined using simultaneous pre- and postsynaptic intracellular microelectrode recording. A presynaptic microelectrode recorded action potentials and membrane potential of a presynaptic axonal branch, and one or more postsynaptic microelectrodes recorded EPSPs in muscle fibers innervated by the excitatory motor axon. Components of the phosphatidylinositol second messenger system and pharmacologic agents affecting this system were injected through the presynaptic electrode, and changes in synaptic transmission were measured. 3. Presynaptic injection of inositol 1,4,5-triphosphate (IP3) causes presynaptic depolarization, increases the frequency of spontaneously released transmitter quanta, and promotes a relatively short-lasting facilitation of evoked EPSPs. These actions are consistent with elevation of intracellular Ca2+ and resemble the early phase of serotonin-induced facilitation. 4. Application of a phorbol ester, 12-O-tetradecanoyl-phorbol-13-acetate (TPA), that activates protein kinase C (C-kinase), produces a long-lasting, low-level facilitation of evoked EPSPs. Application of another phorbol ester, phorbol-12-monoacetate (PTMA), which does not activate C-kinase has no effect. 5. Presynaptic injection of RA 233, a phospholipase C (PLP-C) inhibitor, blocks all aspects of serotonin-induced facilitation. This compound was found to have no general deleterious effects on synaptic transmission and does not block other forms of synaptic facilitation in this preparation.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Effects of preventing reinnervation on axotomized spinal motoneurons in the cat. II. Changes in group Ia synaptic function
Authors: Vanden Noven S. , Pinter M. J.
Published: December 2017

1. Composite excitatory postsynaptic potentials (EPSPs) evoked by electrical stimulation of heteronymous group Ia afferents have been studied at various postoperative times in axotomized motoneurons that were denied the opportunity to reinnervate muscle. 2. The medial gastrocnemius (MG) nerve was transected and sutured onto the surface of the normally innervated lateral gastrocnemius (LG) muscle. The denervated MG muscle was excised thereby eliminating access of regenerating MG motor axons to vacant end-plates. 3. The mean amplitude of monosynaptic Ia EPSPs evoked by electrical stimulation of the LG-soleus (LGS) nerve and recorded in axotomized MG motoneurons showed an initial decline at 20 days postoperative (DPO) that was not significant. At 44 DPO, mean amplitude had declined significantly to 43% of the control mean amplitude. At 90 DPO, mean EPSP amplitude was not significantly different from control. At the latest postoperative time (150-180 DPO), mean amplitude was significantly less than the control amplitude. 4. Mean EPSP rise time (time-to-peak) was significantly increased (27%) at the earliest postoperative times (20-44 DPO). At later postoperative times (90-180), mean EPSP rise time was not significantly different from mean control rise time. 5. "Partial responses" superimposed on EPSPs were not observed at any postoperative time. 6. Mean posttetanic potentiation (PTP) of the LGS EPSP was significantly depressed at 20 DPO. At later postoperative times, PTP did not differ significantly from mean control PTP. 7. The possibility is considered that postaxotomy alterations in the electrical properties of motoneurons may explain these complex variations of mean EPSP amplitude and rise time.
Influence of somatosensory cortex on different classes of cat motor cortex output neuron
Authors: Zarzecki P.
Published: December 2017

1. Multiple output pathways originate from motor cortex. In this study on cats, six classes of corticofugal neurons were identified by antidromic activation. Corticocallosal neurons of layer III were activated antidromically by stimulation of contralateral motor cortex. Layer V neurons were identified by antidromic activation from cerebral peduncle, red nucleus, lateral reticular nucleus of medulla, or spinal cord. Corticothalamic neurons were identified in layer VI. All the identified neurons were tested for input from primary somatosensory cortex. 2. Neurons of all corticofugal groups received excitatory inputs from primary somatosensory cortex. The shortest latency corticocortical effects of 1.2-2.5 ms were found for corticocallosal neurons of layer III, and for layer V neurons which projected axons through the cerebral peduncle, to red nucleus, and to spinal cord. 3. Nearby neurons, projecting to the same of different targets, were affected nonuniformly by corticocortical inputs. This finding supports the conclusion that specificity of afferent connections within cerebral cortex is not determined by anatomic segregation of cell bodies nor by projection target of efferent neurons. 4. These selectively distributed input connectivities suggest that even a small region of motor cortex could send different signals to its diverse targets.
Nociceptive neurons in rat superior colliculus: response properties, topography, and functional implications
Authors: McHaffie J. G. , Kao C. Q. , Stein B. E.
Published: December 2017

1. Extracellular recordings were made from single superior colliculus neurons in urethane-anesthetized rats in response to mechanical and/or thermal stimulation of the skin. In addition to those activated by low-threshold (LT) tactile stimuli, many neurons responded preferentially, or solely, to noxious stimuli. Two functionally defined subtypes of nociceptive neurons were distinguished: wide-dynamic-range (WDR) neurons, which responded optimally to noxious stimuli but also to innocuous stimuli; and nociceptive-specific (NS) neurons, which responded solely to frankly noxious stimuli. The thermal thresholds were 42-45 degrees C, and the stimulus-response relationships were positively accelerating power functions with exponents of 2.9 (WDR) and 3.1 (NS). 2. WDR neurons also responded to cooling of the skin to temperatures below 24 degrees C. Like noxious heat responses, cold responses were monotonically graded as the intensity of the cold stimulus was increased. Thus the temperature sensitivity of thermal-sensitive neurons in the superior colliculus appeared to be tuned to detect large deviations from ambient skin temperature in either direction once threshold is reached. 3. LT neurons were somatotopically organized, with the head and forelimbs rostral and the trunk and hindlimbs caudal. The limbs were generally represented further lateral in the structure, whereas more proximal body parts were more medial. Nevertheless, there was extensive overlap of body parts especially in areas of transition. Thus, a "block-to-block" or "area-to-area" rather than a "point-to-point" representation of the body surface was evident. 4. The nociceptive representation did not violate the general LT somatotopy but neither was it coextensive. Virtually all nociceptive neurons had trigeminal receptive fields and were thus heavily represented in the rostral superior colliculus, where the LT face representation was also located. No nociceptive neurons were present in the caudal one-third of the structure. A general dorsal-to-ventral segregation of somatosensory neurons also was noted, so that in a given electrode penetration, LT neurons usually were the most superficial, WDR neurons were just below these, and NS neurons were deepest of all. 5. The presence of overlapping LT and nociceptive trigeminal representations in the superior colliculus seems particularly adaptive in view of the fact that rodents use their vibrissae for exploring their environment and thus put rostral body parts at risk during such behaviors.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)
Analysis of motion of the visual field by direction, expansion/contraction, and rotation cells clustered in the dorsal part of the medial superior temporal area of the macaque monkey
Authors: Tanaka K. , Saito H.
Published: December 2017

1. The dorsal part of the medial superior temporal area (MST) is characterized by clusters of three types of visually responsive cells: Direction cells, which respond to a straight frontoparallel movement in a particular direction; Expansion/contraction cells, which selectively respond to either an expansion or contraction; and Rotation cells, which selectively respond to either a clockwise or counterclockwise rotation. To study their functional role, experiments were carried out on immobilized monkeys, anesthetized with N2O. 2. The areal extent of stimulation was crucial for activation: movements of a pattern extending over a wide visual field elicited a larger response than those elicited by a local pattern. 3. The shape, exact size, and sign of contrast of the texture components of the pattern were not important in determining the magnitude of response. 4. Different cells responded to different ranges of speed of movement. 5. Expansion/contraction cells were activated more strongly by a real (isotropic) expansion/contraction than by an "axial expansion/contraction" in which a pattern expanded or contracted along a particular axis. Rotation cells were activated more strongly by a circular rotation in the frontoparallel plane than by a shearing movement. 6. We discuss the possibility that the cells are involved in the detection and analysis of wide-field movements, which are generally caused by a movement of the animal itself. The mode (straight transfer, expansion/contraction, or rotation), direction, and speed of the relative movement of the animal and the external space may be represented by the activity of the cells.
Classification of turtle retinal ganglion cells
Authors: Granda A. M. , Fulbrook J. E.
Published: December 2017

1. Receptive fields of 78 retinal ganglion cells were analyzed for their responses to moving and stationary lights that were presented under a variety of stimulus conditions. All cells were sensitive to moving stimuli, and their receptive fields often comprised excitatory and inhibitory sub-regions. 2. Properties used in the classification included responses to stationary flashed stimuli, receptive-field organization, changes in stimulus wavelength and adaptation, movement velocity, and direction of stimulus movement. Eight functional cell classes were derived: simple, ON-sustained, annular, wavelength-sensitive, directionally selective, bar-shaped, large-field, and velocity. 3. Simple cells, representing 21% of the sample, had circular or oval receptive fields of 3-22 degrees that gave transient responses to stationary, flashed lights. Many of these cells, but not all, showed antagonistic center-surround organizations. ON-sustained cells responded for the duration of the stimulus flash or for the duration of a light flash moving through the receptive field. These units comprised 8% of the sample; they had small, circular, non-directional receptive fields and they were most sensitive to red light. Their field sizes did not vary with changes in adaptation level. 4. Annular cells (4% of the sample) gave no responses to any stimulation in the field center, but they responded strongly to stimulation in the surround area, especially to stimuli that moved very slowly through the region. Annular cells were nondirectional, with circular centers of 5-6 degrees diam and annular surround widths of 2-4 degrees. They responded best in light adaptation. 5. Wavelength-sensitive cells, similar to most of the cells sampled, were sensitive to red light when light-adapted. Some cells in addition showed input from rods under dark adaptation. Intensity-response curves for these latter cells showed clear changes from one input to the other as the cells' functional ranges were explored. Some cells responded best to short- or middle-wavelength light, but these were more rarely met. Where multiple receptor inputs could be identified, long-wavelength stimuli evoked transient responses, whereas short-wavelength stimuli favored more sustained spike trains. Wavelength-sensitive cells in this category comprised 5% of the sample.
Neck muscle spindle activity in the decerebrate, unparalyzed cat: dynamics and influence of vestibular stimulation
Authors: Kasper J. , Wilson V. J. , Yamagata Y. , Yates B. J.
Published: December 2017

1. Using floating electrodes, we recorded from neck-muscle spindle afferents in the C2 dorsal root ganglion of the decerebrate cat. Nerves to dorsal neck muscles were cut so that the afferents presumably originated mainly from ventral and ventrolateral perivertebral muscles and sternocleidomastoid. One goal of our experiments was to study possible vestibular influence exerted on these spindles via the fusimotor system. Unparalyzed preparations were therefore used. 2. Stimuli consisted of sinusoidal rotations in vertical planes. Neck tilt stretched neck muscles, whereas whole-body tilt stimulated vestibular receptors. 3. For each afferent we first determined the most effective direction of neck tilt, then used stimuli oriented close to this direction to study response dynamics, particularly gain of responses to stimuli of different amplitudes (0.5-7.5 degrees). 4. Three-quarters of the afferents failed to respond to 0.5 degrees, 0.2-Hz neck rotations. Stimuli that were effective usually elicited responses that had low gain and were linear over the whole range of amplitudes. Only a few afferents had behavior typical of spindle primary afferents: high-gain responses to small sinusoidal stimuli, gain decreasing as stimulus amplitude increases. This prevalence of static spindle responses in the unparalyzed cat is in striking contrast to results obtained on neck-muscle spindles in paralyzed, decerebrate cats, and on hindlimb extensor muscle spindles in decerebrate, unparalyzed cats. 5. Paralysis produced by injection of Flaxedil changed the behavior of 2/4 spindle afferents tested, causing the appearance of high-gain responses to 0.5 degrees stimuli and of nonlinear behavior.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Behavioral inspiratory inhibition: inactivated and activated respiratory cells
Authors: Orem J.
Published: December 2017

1. Eleven adult cats were trained to stop inspiration in response to a conditioning stimulus. The conditioning stimuli were presented at the onset of inspiration at intervals of approximately 20-30 s. Intratracheal pressures, diaphragmatic activity, and the extracellular activity of single medullary respiratory neurons were recorded while the animals performed this response. 2. Inactivation of the diaphragm to the conditioning stimuli occurred at latencies that varied from 40 to 110 ms and averaged 74 +/- 32 (SD) ms. 3. The subjects of this report are 38 inspiratory neurons that were inactivated and 19 cells that were activated when inspiration was stopped behaviorally. These cells were located in the region of n. ambiguus and the ventrolateral n. of tractus solitarius. 4. The inspiratory cells that were inactivated behaviorally had the following characteristics: 1) Most had an augmenting inspiratory profile with (n = 14) or without (n = 9) postinspiratory activity. Other types were inspiratory throughout (n = 5), decrementing inspiratory (n = 3), tonic inspiratory (n = 4), early inspiratory (n = 2), and expiratory-inspiratory (n = 1). 2) Their mean discharge rate was 39 +/- 2.7 (SE) Hz. 3) The latency of their inactivation in response to the task averaged 81 +/- 4.9 (SE) ms, and 4) Their activity corresponded closely to breathing not only during the behavioral response but also during eupnea (eta 2 = 0.62 +/- 0.04, mean +/- SE) and respiratory acts such as sneezing, sniffing, meowing, and purring. 5. The cells that were activated when inspiration was stopped behaviorally had the following characteristics. 1) As a group, they had discharge profiles related to every phase of the respiratory cycle. 2) They were recorded in the same region as, and often simultaneously with, respiratory cells that were inactivated. 3) Their activity patterns were highly variable such that the signal strength and consistency of the respiratory component of that activity were weak (eta 2 = 0.27 +/- 0.03, mean +/- SE). 4) The latency of their activation in response to the task averaged 58 +/- 2.7 (SE) ms and was significantly shorter than the latency of inactivation of the high eta 2-valued inspiratory cells. 5) This activation was intense and prolonged. 6. It is hypothesized that the activated cells integrate nonrespiratory and respiratory inputs and act to inhibit other respiratory cells during the behavioral inhibition of inspiration.
Chemically and electrically coupled interneurons mediate respiratory pumping in Aplysia
Authors: Koester J.
Published: December 2017

1. Respiratory pumping in Aplysia consists of synchronous, brief contractions of the mantle organs that can occur spontaneously and also can be triggered by tactile or noxious stimulation. It has been shown previously to be driven in part by a cluster of electrically coupled interneurons, called the L25 cells, located in the left hemiabdominal ganglion. This paper describes a second class of interneurons, the R25 cells, that also plays an important role in the control of respiratory pumping. 2. The R25 cells are a cluster of approximately 14 interneurons located in the right hemiabdominal ganglion, roughly symmetrical to the L25 cells. The R25 cells are electrically coupled to each other and to the L25 cells. Some R25 and L25 cells also produce chemically mediated fast excitation and slow inhibition of other neurons in the R25/L25 network. 3. Three lines of evidence demonstrate that the R25 cells play a role in mediating respiratory pumping: 1) They fire in a synchronous burst each time the behavior occurs. 2) They make direct chemical synaptic connections to motoneurons that mediate the behavior; and 3) Firing a single R25 cell can trigger the entire behavior, by recruiting synchronous bursts of activity in all of the other R25 and L25 neurons. Individual R25 and L25 cells can act both as trigger cells (exciting the other interneurons) and as relay cells (projecting directly to motoneurons). 4. Burst initiation within the R25/L25 network appears to have two phases: 1) There is an initial phase when the R25 and L25 cells fire at a relatively low frequency. This phase can be driven either by endogenous pacemaker activity of the R25/L25 cells or by afferent synaptic input from sensory pathways; and 2) The late, high-frequency phase of the burst results largely from reverberation within the network, as activity in each cell contributes positive feedback via the excitatory chemical and electrical connections between R25 and L25 cells. 5. Synchronization of the different motor outputs that make up the pumping behavior is achieved by three mechanisms: 1) When pumping occurs spontaneously, the electrical coupling between the cells of the R25/L25 network ensures that these cells will all be near spike threshold at the end of each interburst period.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)
Intra-axonal recordings of cutaneous primary afferents during fictive locomotion in the cat
Authors: Gossard J. P. , Cabelguen J. M. , Rossignol S.
Published: December 2017

1. Cutaneous primary afferents were recorded intracellularly during fictive locomotion in decorticated cats with the goal of improving our understanding of how locomotor networks might centrally control the transmission in cutaneous pathways at a presynaptic level. 2. Identified cutaneous axons from superficialis peroneal nerve (SP) or tibialis posterior nerve (TP) were recorded intracellularly together with the electroneurograms (ENGs) of representative flexor and extensor muscle nerves of the hindlimb as well as dorsal root potential from L6 or L7 (DRP). Fictive locomotion occurred spontaneously after decortication (n = 12) or was induced by stimulation of the mesencephalic locomotor region (MLR) (n = 6). 3. The results revealed that all cutaneous axons (82 units with resting potential greater than 45 mV) showed fluctuations of their membrane potential (greater than or equal to 0.5 mV) at the rhythm of the fictive locomotion. The characteristics of fluctuation patterns, common to all cutaneous units, consisted of two depolarization waves per cycle: one related to the flexor activity, the other related to the extensor activity. The flexor-related depolarization was followed by a sharp trough of membrane repolarization. The extensor-related depolarization usually overlapped partly with the flexor-depolarization of the following cycle. The relative size of each depolarization could vary among different afferents of the same nerve in the same animal. Hence, maximal depolarization could occur in different parts of the locomotor cycle, but, for the majority of units (82%), it occurred during the flexor activity. These results were similar for SP and TP units. 4. Twenty percent of the units were discharging with a constant or irregular frequency. Phasic antidromic discharges related to locomotor ENGs were rarely encountered (5/82 units). 5. Linear regression analysis of the temporal relationships between fluctuations of membrane potential of cutaneous axons and locomotor bursts over several cycles showed that the timing of presynaptic events in cutaneous afferents is related to the events of the locomotor output. However, the same type of analysis showed that the amplitude of axonal depolarizations and the amplitude of flexor and extensor locomotor bursts could vary independently. Tight temporal relationships were also found between the depolarizations recorded in cutaneous units and the fluctuations recorded at the dorsal root level (DRP). 6. Based on the assumption that the locomotor fluctuations of cutaneous membrane potential are mediated through the primary afferent depolarization (PAD) pathways associated with presynaptic inhibition, it is proposed that the central pattern generator for locomotion (CPG) could phasically control the efficacy of transmission of cutaneous pathways at a presynaptic level as part of the locomotor program.
Intracellular analysis of trigeminal motoneuron rhythmical activity during stimulation of pontomedullary reticular formation in anesthetized guinea pig
Authors: Gurahian S. M. , Chandler S. H. , Goldberg L. J.
Published: December 2017

1. The effects of repetitive stimulation of the nucleus pontis caudalis and nucleus gigantocellularis (PnC-Gi) of the reticular formation on jaw opener and closer motoneurons were examined. The PnC-Gi was stimulated at 75 Hz at current intensities less than 90 microA. 2. Rhythmically occurring, long-duration, depolarizing membrane potentials in jaw opener motoneurons [excitatory masticatory drive potential (E-MDP)] and long-duration hyperpolarizing membrane potentials [inhibitory masticatory drive potentials (I-MDP)] in jaw closer motoneurons were evoked by 40-Hz repetitive masticatory cortex stimulation. These potentials were completely suppressed by PnC-Gi stimulation. PnC-Gi stimulation also suppressed the short-duration, stimulus-locked depolarizations [excitatory postsynaptic potentials (EPSPs)] in jaw opener motoneurons and short-duration, stimulus-locked hyperpolarizations [inhibitory postsynaptic potentials (IPSPs)] in jaw closer motoneurons, evoked by the same repetitive cortical stimulation. 3. Short pulse train (3 pulses; 500 Hz) stimulation of the masticatory area of the cortex in the absence of rhythmical jaw movements activated the short-latency paucisynaptic corticotrigeminal pathways and evoked short-duration EPSPs and IPSPs in jaw opener and closer motoneurons, respectively. The same PnC-Gi stimulation that completely suppressed rhythmical MDPs, and stimulus-locked PSPs evoked by repetitive stimulation to the masticatory area of the cortex, produced an average reduction in PSP amplitude of 22 and 17% in jaw closer and opener motoneurons, respectively. 4. PnC-Gi stimulation produced minimal effects on the amplitude of the antidromic digastric field potential or on the intracellularly recorded antidromic digastric action potential. Moreover, PnC-Gi stimulation had little effect on jaw opener or jaw closer motoneuron membrane resting potentials in the absence of rhythmical jaw movements (RJMs). PnC-Gi stimulation produced variable effects on conductance pulses elicited in jaw opener and closer motoneurons in the absence of RJMs. 5. These results indicate that the powerful suppression of cortically evoked MDPs in opener and closer motoneurons during PnC-Gi stimulation is most likely not a result of postsynaptic inhibition of trigeminal motoneurons. It is proposed that this suppression is a result of suppression of activity in neurons responsible for masticatory rhythm generation.
Inward rectification in rat nucleus accumbens neurons
Authors: Uchimura N. , Cherubini E. , North R. A.
Published: December 2017

1. Intracellular recordings were made from neurons in slices cut from the rat nucleus accumbens septi. Membrane currents were measured with a single-electrode voltage-clamp amplifier in the potential range -50 to -140 mV. 2. In control conditions (2.5 mM potassium), the resting membrane potential of the neurons was -83.4 +/- 1.1 (SE) mV (n = 157). Steady state membrane conductance was voltage dependent, being 34.8 +/- 1.7 nS (n = 25) at -100 mV and 8.0 +/- 0.7 nS (n = 25) at -60 mV. 3. Barium (1 microM) markedly reduced the inward rectification and caused a small inward current (40.6 +/- 8.7 pA, n = 8) at the resting potential. These effects became larger with higher barium concentrations, and, in 100 microM barium, the current-voltage relation was straight. 4. The block of the inward current by barium (at -130 mV) occurred with an exponential time course; the time constant was approximately 1 s at 1 microM barium and less than 90 ms with 100 microM. Strontium had effects similar to those of barium, but 1000-fold higher concentrations were required. Cesium chloride (2 mM) and rubidium chloride (2 mM) also blocked the inward rectification; their action reached steady state within 50 ms. 5. It is concluded that the nucleus accumbens neurons have a potassium conductance with many features of a typical inward rectifier and that this contributes to the potassium conductance at the resting potential.
Effects of midbrain and medullary stimulation on spinomesencephalic tract cells in the cat
Authors: Yezierski R. P.
Published: December 2017

1. The effects of electrical stimulation at different rostrocaudal levels of the midbrain, and at sites in the rostral medulla ipsilateral and contralateral to spinal recording sites, were evaluated against the responses of 46 cells belonging to the cat spinomesencephalic tract (SMT). 2. Inhibitory and/or excitatory effects of brain stem stimulation were observed on SMT cells that responded best (26 cells) or exclusively (12 cells) to noxious mechanical or thermal stimuli, as well as on 7 cells responding only to tap and/or stimulation of deep tissues. Recording sites for 32 cells were located in laminae V-VIII (27 cells) and laminae I-III (5 cells). 3. Midbrain stimulation sites were located in the superior colliculus, central gray (CG), red nucleus, and the midbrain reticular formation. Both inhibitory-only and excitatory-only effects were observed, although the most common effect of midbrain stimulation was excitation followed by inhibition (mixed effects). The effects of stimulation at different midbrain levels were determined for each cell. Stimulation in the caudal, middle, or rostral midbrain was often found to exert different effects on the same SMT cell. 4. Stimulation in the rostral medulla at sites located in nucleus raphe magnus (NRM), nucleus reticularis gigantocellularis, and nucleus reticularis magnocellularis produced the same complement of effects observed with midbrain stimulation. Excitation followed by inhibition was the most common effect observed. 5. Stimulus intensities required to produce excitatory or inhibitory effects from midbrain were 114 +/- 85 (SD) microA and 210 +/- 91 microA, respectively. Stimulus currents required to produce excitatory or inhibitory effects from medullary stimulation sites were 124 +/- 56 microA and 70 +/- 60 microA, respectively. The mean currents required to produce mixed effects were 221 +/- 120 microA (midbrain) and 127 +/- 71 microA (medulla). Increasing the stimulus intensity used to evaluate brain stem effects increased the magnitude and duration of effects for 33 cells. Mixed effects were observed on 11 cells at stimulus intensities greater than those required to produce inhibitory-only effects. 6. Significant differences were found between the latencies of excitation and inhibition produced from different brain stem levels. These differences suggest that midbrain and medullary stimulation activate descending pathways with a wide range of conduction velocities and/or supraspinal and spinal connectivities. 7. The spinal trajectory of pathways contributing to the varied effects of brain stem stimulation as well as the complex receptive fields (RFs) of SMT cells were evaluated by the placement of lesions in the cervical spinal cord.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)