Journal articles on the topic 'Motoneurones'
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1
Büschges, A., J. Schmitz, and U. Bässler. "Rhythmic patterns in the thoracic nerve cord of the stick insect induced by pilocarpine." Journal of Experimental Biology 198, no. 2 (February 1, 1995): 435–56. http://dx.doi.org/10.1242/jeb.198.2.435.
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Bath application of the muscarinic agonist pilocarpine onto the deafferented stick insect thoracic nerve cord induced long-lasting rhythmic activity in leg motoneurones. Rhythmicity was induced at concentrations as low as 1x10(-4) mol l-1 pilocarpine. The most stable rhythms were reliably elicited at concentrations from 2x10(-3) mol l-1 to 5x10(-3) mol l-1. Rhythmicity could be completely abolished by application of atropine. The rhythm in antagonistic motoneurone pools of the three proximal leg joints, the subcoxal, the coxo-trochanteral (CT) and the femoro-tibial (FT), was strictly alternating. In the subcoxal motoneurones, the rhythm was characterised by the retractor burst duration being correlated with cycle period, whereas the protractor burst duration was almost independent of it. The cycle periods of the rhythms in the subcoxal and CT motoneurone pools were in a similar range for a given preparation. In contrast, the rhythm exhibited by motoneurones supplying the FT joint often had about half the duration. The pilocarpine-induced rhythm was generated independently in each hemiganglion. There was no strict intersegmental coupling, although the protractor motoneurone pools of the three thoracic ganglia tended to be active in phase. There was no stereotyped cycle-to-cycle coupling in the activities of the motoneurone pools of the subcoxal joint, the CT joint and the FT joint in an isolated mesothoracic ganglion. However, three distinct 'spontaneous, recurrent patterns' (SRPs) of motoneuronal activity were reliably generated. Within each pattern, there was strong coupling of the activity of the motoneurone pools. The SRPs resembled the motor output during step-phase transitions in walking: for example, the most often generated SRP (SRP1) was exclusively exhibited coincident with a burst of the fast depressor trochanteris motoneurone. During this burst, there was a switch from subcoxal protractor to retractor activity after a constant latency. The activity of the FT joint extensor motoneurones was strongly decreased during SRP1. SRP1 thus qualitatively resembled the motoneuronal activity during the transition from swing to stance of the middle legs in forward walking. Hence, we refer to SRPs as 'fictive step-phase transitions'. In intact, restrained animals, application of pilocarpine also induced alternating activity in antagonistic motoneurone pools supplying the proximal leg joints. However, there were marked differences from the deafferented preparation. For example, SRP1 was not generated in the latter situation. However, if the ipsilateral main leg nerve was cut, SRP1s reliably occurred. Our results on the rhythmicity in leg motoneurone pools of deafferented preparations demonstrate central coupling in the activity of the leg motoneurones that might be incorporated into the generation of locomotion in vivo.
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Vrbova, G., R. Navarrete, and M. Lowrie. "Matching of muscle properties and motoneurone firing patterns during early stages of development." Journal of Experimental Biology 115, no. 1 (March 1, 1985): 113–23. http://dx.doi.org/10.1242/jeb.115.1.113.
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In adults, muscle fibres match the functional requirements of the motoneurone that supplies them. During early stages of postnatal development of the rat neither muscle fibre properties, nor activity patterns of motoneurones supplying fast and slow muscles have completed their differentiation. Nevertheless, even at this early stage of development the muscles have characteristic properties that are well matched to the activity patterns of immature motoneurones. With further development differentiation of motoneurone activity and muscle fibre properties goes hand in hand. If during this period of linked differentiation, connections between the motoneurones and muscle fibres are disrupted, the development of fast muscles is permanently impaired.
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Kittmann, R. "Neural mechanisms of adaptive gain control in a joint control loop: muscle force and motoneuronal activity." Journal of Experimental Biology 200, no. 9 (January 1, 1997): 1383–402. http://dx.doi.org/10.1242/jeb.200.9.1383.
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An adaptive gain control system of a proprioceptive feedback system, the femur­tibia control loop, is investigated. It enables the joint control loop to work with a high gain but it prevents instability oscillations. In the inactive stick insect, the realisation of specific changes in gain is described for tibial torque, for extensor tibiae muscle force and for motoneuronal activity. In open-loop experiments, sinusoidal stimuli are applied to the femoral chordotonal organ (fCO). Changes in gain that depend on fCO stimulus parameters (such as amplitude, frequency and repetition rate), are investigated. Furthermore, spontaneous and touch-induced changes in gain that resemble the behavioural state of the animal are described. Changes in gain in motoneurones are always realised as changes in the amplitude of modulation of their discharge frequency. Nevertheless, depending on the stimulus situation, two different mechanisms underlie gain changes in motoneurones. (i) Changes in gain can be based on changes in the strength of the sensorimotor pathways that transmit stimulus-modulated information from the fCO to the motoneurones. (ii) Changes in gain can be based on changes in the mean activity of a motoneurone by means of its spike threshold: when, during the modulation, the discharge of a motoneurone is inhibited for part of the stimulus cycle, then a change in mean activity subsequently causes a change in modulation amplitude and gain. A new neuronal mechanism is described that helps to compensate the low-pass filter characteristics of the muscles by an increased activation, especially by a sharper distribution of spikes in the stimulus cycle at high fCO stimulus frequencies.
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COOKE, IAN R. C. "Further Studies of Crayfish Escape Behaviour: II. Giant Axon-Mediated Neural Activity in the Appendages." Journal of Experimental Biology 118, no. 1 (September 1, 1985): 367–77. http://dx.doi.org/10.1242/jeb.118.1.367.
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Stereotyped responses were evoked in a number of motoneurones in the appendages of semi-intact crayfish when the command neurones for escape behaviour were activated. The medial giant neurones mediated short latency responses in pereiopod common inhibitor, promotor and extensor motoneurones, several abdominal first root neurones and one uropod exopodite promotor motoneurone. The lateral giant neurones mediated short latency responses in the pereiopod common inhibitor neurones, the same abdominal first root neurones and one uropod protopodite promotor motoneurone. These responses can be correlated with stereotyped movements of the appendages which occur in the normal escape behaviour of crayfish. Note:
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Gardiner, Phillip, Eric Beaumont, and Bruno Cormery. "Motoneurones "Learn" and "Forget" Physical Activity." Canadian Journal of Applied Physiology 30, no. 3 (June 1, 2005): 352–70. http://dx.doi.org/10.1139/h05-127.
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In spite of our knowledge of activity related adaptations in supraspinal neurones and skeletal muscles, very little is known concerning adaptations in α-motoneurones to alterations in chronic activity levels. Recent evidence shows that the biophysical properties of α-motoneurones are plastic and adapt to both increases and decreases in chronic activation. The nature of the adaptations-in resting membrane potential, spike threshold, afterhyperpolarization amplitude, and rate of depolarization during spike generation-point to involvement of density, type, location, and/or metabolic modulation of ion conductance channels in the motoneuronal membrane. These changes will have significant effects on how motoneurones respond when activated during the generation of movements, and on the effort required to sustain activation during prolonged exercise. Since the adaptations most likely involve structural changes in the motoneurones and changes in protein synthesis, and change the output response of the cells to input, they are considered to be learning responses. Future research directions for examining this issue are outlined. Key words: α-motoneurones, exercise, training, spinal cord, learning, disuse, spinal cord transection
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Neuman, R. S. "Action of serotonin and norepinephrine on spinal motoneurones following blockade of synaptic transmission." Canadian Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology 63, no. 6 (June 1, 1985): 735–38. http://dx.doi.org/10.1139/y85-120.
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The actions of serotonin and norepinephrine were investigated on spinal motoneurones in isolated, hemisected rat and frog spinal cords. Serotonin and norepinephrine induced slowly developing depolarizations of spinal motoneurones which were frequently preceded by brief, low amplitude hyperpolarizations. Neither the depolarizations nor the hyperpolarizations were attenuated by 20 mM Mg2+ or tetrodotoxin, although synaptic transmission was blocked in both cases. It thus appears unlikely that the action of serotonin and norepinephrine on spinal motoneurone polarization and results from an indirect action via interneurones.
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Russell, D. F. "Neural basis of teeth coordination during gastric mill rhythms in spiny lobsters, Panulirus interruptus." Journal of Experimental Biology 114, no. 1 (January 1, 1985): 99–119. http://dx.doi.org/10.1242/jeb.114.1.99.
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Motoneurones that drive the closing of the lateral teeth during gastric mill rhythms in spiny lobsters start firing before the motoneurones that drive the medial tooth powerstroke. This has the expected behavioural interpretation that the lateral teeth must close on a food particle before the medial tooth is pulled across it. The neural basis of the teeth coordination was examined. Experiments were made during gastric rhythms in in vitro preparations comprising the stomatogastric, oesophageal and (paired) commissural ganglia. Identified neurones in the stomatogastric ganglion were polarized to study their functional effects on the phasing and amplitude of bursts in other cells. Evoked firing of the lateral teeth closer motoneurones (especially LC) would evoke a discharge in the medial tooth powerstroke (GM) motoneurones, and suppress the firing of the medial tooth returnstroke (CP) motoneurone. Therefore the coordination pathway starts directly with the lateral teeth closer motoneurones. The CI interneurone was found to be an important link in the coordination pathway. It exerted opposite effects on the medial tooth motoneurones, suppressing firing of the powerstroke GM cells while evoking bursts in the returnstroke CP cell. CI affected other features of the pattern as well. Non-spiking inhibition from the lateral teeth closer motoneurones (LC and GP) to the lateral teeth opener motoneurones (LGs) was found to occur conjointly with spike-mediated IPSPs. Hyperpolarization of the LC, GP or CI neurones could temporarily abolish the gastric rhythm, but bursting in some or all of the other cells would eventually return, although in some cases the phase pattern was altered. It appears that no individual neurone in the gastric network is necessary for rhythm production. The coordination system can be viewed as several ‘levels’ of synaptic connections, each level being redundant and synergistic with the others.
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Sears, T. A. "Structural changes in intercostal motoneurones following axotomy." Journal of Experimental Biology 132, no. 1 (September 1, 1987): 93–109. http://dx.doi.org/10.1242/jeb.132.1.93.
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Motoneurone disease (MND or amyotrophic lateral sclerosis) is a paralysing disease of unknown cause involving progressive, widespread muscle atrophy due to degeneration of spinal and other motoneurones and an accompanying loss of Betz cells in the motor cortex. A current hypothesis attributes the disease to the loss of a muscle-derived neurotrophic factor acting in concert with the normal age-related deterioration and loss of motoneurones. The roots of this hypothesis are traced through research based mainly on the developing neuromuscular system, and in particular on the age-related processes of natural motoneurone death during embryogenesis: the neonatal reduction of polyneuronal innervation and the age-dependent variations in motor nerve terminal sprouting in response to partial denervation. A consideration of the disease process itself in association with the review of earlier work provide the background for the present work which reexamines ultrastructurally the chromatolytic and later responses to axotomy and the muscle-dependent factors responsible for the reformation of the Nissl bodies.
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Ferguson, G. P., and P. R. Benjamin. "The whole-body withdrawal response of Lymnaea stagnalis. II. Activation of central motoneurones and muscles by sensory input." Journal of Experimental Biology 158, no. 1 (July 1, 1991): 97–116. http://dx.doi.org/10.1242/jeb.158.1.97.
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The role of centrally located motoneurones in producing the whole-body withdrawal response of Lymnaea stagnalis (L.) was investigated. The motoneurones innervating the muscles used during whole-body withdrawal, the columellar muscle (CM) and the dorsal longitudinal muscle (DLM) were cells with a high resting potential (−60 to −70 mV) and thus a high threshold for spike initiation. In both semi-intact and isolated brain preparations these motoneurones showed very little spontaneous spike activity. When spontaneous firing was seen it could be correlated with the occurrence of two types of spontaneous excitatory postsynaptic potential (EPSP). One was a unitary EPSP that occasionally caused the initiation of single action potentials. The second was a larger-amplitude, long-duration (presumably compound) EPSP that caused the motoneurones to fire a burst of high-frequency action potentials. This second type of EPSP activity was associated with spontaneous longitudinal contractions of the body in semi-intact preparations. Tactile stimulation of the skin of Lymnaea evoked EPSPs in the CM and DLM motoneurones and in some other identified cells. These EPSPs summated and usually caused the motoneurone to fire action potentials, thus activating the withdrawal response muscles and causing longitudinal contraction of the semi-intact animal. Stimulating different areas of the body wall demonstrated that there was considerable sensory convergence on the side of the body ipsilateral to stimulation, but less on the contralateral side. Photic (light off) stimulation of the skin of Lymnaea also initiated EPSPs in CM and DLM motoneurones and in some other identified cells in the central nervous system (CNS). Cutting central nerves demonstrated that the reception of this sensory input was mediated by dermal photoreceptors distributed throughout the epidermis. The activation of the CM and DLM motoneurones by sensory input of the modalities that normally cause the whole-body withdrawal of the intact animal demonstrates that these motoneurones have the appropriate electrophysiological properties for the role of mediating whole-body withdrawal.
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Murayama, M., and M. Takahata. "Neuronal mechanisms underlying the facilitatory control of uropod steering behaviour during treadmill walking in crayfish. I. Antagonistically regulated background excitability of uropod motoneurones." Journal of Experimental Biology 201, no. 9 (May 1, 1998): 1283–94. http://dx.doi.org/10.1242/jeb.201.9.1283.
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One of the postural reflexes of crayfish, the uropod steering response, is elicited by specific sensory inputs while the animal is walking. It is not elicited, however, by the same inputs when the animal is at rest. To clarify the neuronal mechanisms underlying this facilitatory control of body posture in the active animals, we used intracellular recordings to analyse the synaptic activities of uropod motor system neurones in an unanaesthetized whole-animal preparation. Several uropod motoneurones were found to receive sustained depolarizing inputs during walking, whereas the walking leg motoneurones sampled always showed rhythmic activity. The membrane conductance of the uropod motoneurones increased during the sustained synaptic activity. Premotor nonspiking interneurones showed depolarizing or hyperpolarizing membrane potential changes during walking that were also accompanied by increases in membrane conductance. Some of these interneurones enhanced uropod motoneurone activity, whereas others suppressed it during walking. These results suggest that the background excitability of uropod motoneurones is kept at an intermediate level during walking by the antagonistic inputs from premotor nonspiking interneurones so that the uropod motor system can be responsive to both further excitatory and inhibitory inputs resulting from postural changes. <P>
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PEARSON, K. G., and H. WOLF. "Connections of Hindwing Tegulae with Flight Neurones in the Locust, Locusta Migratoria." Journal of Experimental Biology 135, no. 1 (March 1, 1988): 381–409. http://dx.doi.org/10.1242/jeb.135.1.381.
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1. The connections of afferents from the hindwing tegulae to flight motoneurones and interneurones in the locust, Locusta migratoria, have been determined by selectively stimulating the tegula afferents while recording intracellularly from identified neurones in the meso- and metathoracic ganglia. 2. Electrical stimulation of the hindwing tegula nerve (nerve lCla) revealed two groups of afferents distinguished by a difference in their conduction velocities. Both groups of afferents made excitatory connections to hindwing elevator motoneurones in the ipsilateral half of the metathoracic ganglion. Latency measurements indicated that these connections were monosynaptic. Stimulation of the hindwing tegula nerve also evoked excitatory postsynaptic potentials (EPSPs) in elevator motoneurones in the mesothoracic ganglion and in the contralateral half of the metathoracic ganglion, and inhibitory postsynaptic potentials (IPSPs) in forewing and hindwing depressor motoneurones. The latencies of these evoked EPSPs and IPSPs indicated that the initial responses were produced via interneuronal pathways. 3. None of the recordings revealed EPSPs in depressor motoneurones or IPSPs in elevator motoneurones in response to hindwing tegula stimulation. This observation differs from that in Schistocerca gregaria where it has been reported that the large tegula afferents produce EPSPs in depressors and IPSPs in elevators (Kien & Altman, 1979). 4. Some of the interneurones in disynaptic excitatory and inhibitory pathways to motoneurones were identified. These interneurones received input from both hindwing tegulae and were readily excited beyond threshold by mechanical stimulation of the tegulae or by electrical stimulation of the tegula afferents. The contribution of one excitatory interneurone to the electrically evoked EPSPs was assessed by blocking spike initiation in the interneurone while recording simultaneously from a flight motoneurone. 5. Based on our observations of the central connections of tegula afferents to flight motoneurones and the previously reported discharge patterns of these afferents during tethered flight (Neumann, 1985), we propose that a major function of the hindwing tegulae in L. migratoria is to generate the initial depolarizations in forewing and hindwing elevator motoneurones during flight. Consistent with this proposal was our finding that ablation of the hindwing tegulae delayed the onset of elevator activity relative to the onset of the preceding depressor activity.
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Ferguson, G. P., and P. R. Benjamin. "The whole-body withdrawal response of Lymnaea stagnalis. I. Identification of central motoneurones and muscles." Journal of Experimental Biology 158, no. 1 (July 1, 1991): 63–95. http://dx.doi.org/10.1242/jeb.158.1.63.
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Two muscle systems mediated the whole-body withdrawal response of Lymnaea stagnalis: the columellar muscle (CM) and the dorsal longitudinal muscle (DLM). The CM was innervated by the columellar nerves and contracted longitudinally to shorten the ventral head-foot complex and to pull the shell forward and down over the body. The DLM was innervated by the superior and inferior cervical nerves and the left and right parietal nerves. During whole-body withdrawal, the DLM contracted synchronously with the CM and shortened the dorsal head-foot longitudinally. The CM and the DLM were innervated by a network of motoneurones. The somata of these cells were located in seven ganglia of the central nervous system (CNS), but were especially concentrated in the bilaterally symmetrical A clusters of the cerebral ganglia. The CM was innervated by cells in the cerebral and pedal ganglia and the DLM by cells in the cerebral, pedal, pleural and left parietal ganglia. Individual motoneurones innervated large, but discrete, areas of muscle, which often overlapped with those innervated by other motoneurones. Motoneuronal action potentials evoked one-for-one non-facilitating excitatory junction potentials within muscle fibres. No all-or-nothing action potentials were recorded in the CM or DLM, and they did not appear to be innervated by inhibitory motoneurones. The whole network of motoneurones was electrotonically coupled, with most cells on one side of the CNS strongly coupled to each other but weakly coupled to cells on the contralateral side of the CNS. This electrotonic coupling between motoneurones is probably important in producing synchronous contraction of the CM and DLM when the animal retracts its head-foot complex during whole-body withdrawal.
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Mrówczyński, Włodzimierz, Piotr Krutki, and Jan Celichowski. "Double stimulation modulates afterhyperpolarization phase following action potentials evoked in rat motoneurones." Acta Neurobiologiae Experimentalis 67, no. 4 (December 31, 2007): 439–46. http://dx.doi.org/10.55782/ane-2007-1660.
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The influence of a pair of stimuli running in time sequence between 5–10 ms (a doublet) on the basic parameters of antidromic action potentials was studied in rat motoneurones. Electrophysiological experiments were based on stimulation of axons in the sciatic nerve and intracellular recording of antidromic action potentials from individual motoneurones located in L4–L5 segments of the spinal cord. The following parameters were analyzed after application of a single stimulus and a doublet: amplitude and duration of the antidromic spike, amplitude, total duration, time to minimum, half-decay time of the afterhyperpolarization (AHP). It was demonstrated that application of a pair of stimuli resulted in: (1) a prolongation of action potentials, (2) a prolongation of the total duration and half-decay time of the AHP, (3) a decline of the time to minimum of the AHP, (4) an increase of the AHP amplitude of the spike evoked by the second stimulus. Significant differences in AHP parameters were found either in fast or slow motoneurones. We suppose that doublet-evoked changes in the AHP amplitude and duration are linked to intrinsic properties of individual motoneurones and may lead to the prolongation of the time interval to subsequent motoneuronal discharges during voluntary activity.
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Wallis, D. I., P. Elliott, G. A. Foster, and BMJ Stringer. "Synaptic activity, induced rhythmic discharge patterns, and receptor subtypes in enriched primary cultures of embryonic rat motoneurones." Canadian Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology 76, no. 3 (March 1, 1998): 347–59. http://dx.doi.org/10.1139/y98-025.
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Long-term cultures of ventral horn neurones from embryonic rat spinal cord were established, after enrichment using density gradient centrifugation, to give a high proportion of cells (>82%) with motoneurone characteristics. Neurones were grown on spinal cord glial monolayers for 4-83 days and investigated using whole-cell patch clamp. Synaptic activity interrupted by periods of quiescence increased in frequency with culture age and was suppressed by 6-cyano-7-nitroquinoxaline-2,3-dione (CNQX) and strychnine. However, strychnine (10 µM) or bicuculline (10-30 µM) or removal of Mg2+ alone induced patterned rhythmic bursting. Glutamate (3-300 µM), alpha -amino-3-hydroxy-5-methyl-4-isoxazole propionic acid (AMPA, 0.3-30 µM), and kainate (1-300 µM) evoked inward currents, as did N-methyl-D-aspartic acid (NMDA, 100 µM) in the absence of Mg2+ and presence of glycine (3-10 µM). Inward currents carried by Cl- were elicited by glycine (10-300 µM) and GABA (1-300 µM), while adenosine (1-10 µM) and cyclopentyladenosine (10 nM - 1 µM) evoked a K+-dependent hyperpolarization. 5-HT, GABAB, purine A, and metabotropic glutamate receptors modulated synaptic excitation of presumed motoneurones. The results suggest that long-term cultures, containing more than 82% developing motoneurones, are able to generate rhythmic bursting; they respond to many of the neurotransmitters that are likely to be released onto motoneurones developing in vivo.Key words: embryonic rat motoneurones, culture, amino acid receptors, adenosine, spinal cord.
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Hedwig, B., and G. Becher. "Forewing movements and intracellular motoneurone stimulation in tethered flying locusts." Journal of Experimental Biology 201, no. 5 (March 1, 1998): 731–44. http://dx.doi.org/10.1242/jeb.201.5.731.
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A new optoelectronic method was used for the measurement of wing movements in tethered flying locusts. The method is based on laser light coupled into a highly flexible optical fibre fastened to a forewing. A dual-axis position-sensing photodiode, aligned to the wing hinge, revealed the flapping, i.e. up-down movement, and lagging, i.e. forward-backward movement, of the wingtip as indicated by the emitted light. Measurements were combined with electromyographic recordings from flight muscles and with intracellular recording and stimulation of flight motoneurones. Compared with muscle recordings, intracellular recordings showed an increase in the variability of motoneurone activity. Stimulation of flight motoneurones reliably caused distinct effects on wing movements. Inhibition of elevator (MN83, MN89) activity led to a decrease in the amplitude of the upstroke. Inhibition of depressor (MN97) activity reduced the amplitude of the downstroke and sometimes stopped flight behaviour. An increase in MN97 activity caused a reduction in the extent of the upward movement and prolonged the flight cycle.
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Davis, R. L. "Influence of oxygen on the heartbeat rhythm of the leech." Journal of Experimental Biology 123, no. 1 (July 1, 1986): 401–8. http://dx.doi.org/10.1242/jeb.123.1.401.
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Raising and lowering the oxygen content in the fluid bathing the skin of the leech modified the frequency of the heartbeat. In raised concentrations of oxygen, the period between bursts of impulses in the heart excitor motoneurones (HE cells) was reduced. Conversely, with lowered oxygen concentrations bathing the skin, the heart rate was slowed, with longer periods between bursts of firing in the HE motoneurones. Changes in oxygen concentration did not affect HE motoneurone firing patterns in preparations in which the CNS was dissected from the skin and surrounding body tissues. Various other stimuli were tried, including stroking, pinching, stretching the skin, blood vessels and gut, as well as changing the temperature. None of these stimuli mimicked the specific effects of oxygen on rhythmicity. It is concluded that peripheral receptors sensitive to changes in oxygen tension are able to influence the central neuronal circuits responsible for generating the rhythm of the heartbeat.
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Syed, N. I., and W. Winlow. "Coordination of locomotor and cardiorespiratory networks of Lymnaea stagnalis by a pair of identified interneurones." Journal of Experimental Biology 158, no. 1 (July 1, 1991): 37–62. http://dx.doi.org/10.1242/jeb.158.1.37.
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1. The morphology and electrophysiology of a newly identified bilateral pair of interneurones in the central nervous system of the pulmonate pond snail Lymnaea stagnalis is described. 2. These interneurones, identified as left and right pedal dorsal 11 (L/RPeD11), are electrically coupled to each other as well as to a large number of foot and body wall motoneurones, forming a fast-acting neural network which coordinates the activities of foot and body wall muscles. 3. The left and right sides of the body wall of Lymnaea are innervated by left and right cerebral A cluster neurones. Although these motoneurones have only ipsilateral projections, they are indirectly electrically coupled to their contralateral homologues via their connections with L/RPeD11. Similarly, the activities of left and right pedal G cluster neurones, which are known to be involved in locomotion, are also coordinated by L/RPeD11. 4. Selective ablation of both neurones PeD11 results in the loss of coordination between the bilateral cerebral A clusters. 5. Interneurones L/RPeD11 are multifunctional. In addition to coordinating motoneuronal activity, they make chemical excitatory connections with heart motoneurones. They also synapse upon respiratory motoneurones, hyperpolarizing those involved in pneumostome opening (expiration) and depolarizing those involved in pneumostome closure (inspiration). 6. An identified respiratory interneurone involved in pneumostome closure (visceral dorsal 4) inhibits L/RPeD11 together with all their electrically coupled follower cells. 7. Both L/RPeD11 have strong excitatory effects on another pair of electrically coupled neurones, visceral dorsal 1 and right parietal dorsal 2, which have previously been shown to be sensitive to changes in the partial pressure of environmental oxygen (PO2). 8. Although L/RPeD11 participate in whole-body withdrawal responses, electrical stimulation applied directly to these neurones was not sufficient to induce this behaviour.
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Esmaeili, Behrooz, Jennifer M. Ross, Cara Neades, David M. Miller, and Julie Ahringer. "The C. elegans even-skipped homologue, vab-7, specifies DB motoneurone identity and axon trajectory." Development 129, no. 4 (February 15, 2002): 853–62. http://dx.doi.org/10.1242/dev.129.4.853.
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Locomotory activity is defined by the specification of motoneurone subtypes. In the nematode, C. elegans, DA and DB motoneurones innervate dorsal muscles and function to induce movement in the backwards or forwards direction, respectively. These two neurone classes express separate sets of genes and extend axons with oppositely directed trajectories; anterior (DA) versus posterior (DB). The DA-specific homeoprotein UNC-4 interacts with UNC-37/Groucho to repress the DB gene, acr-5 (nicotinic acetylcholine receptor subunit). We show that the C. elegans even-skipped-like homoedomain protein, VAB-7, coordinately regulates different aspects of the DB motoneurone fate, in part by repressing unc-4. Wild-type DB motoneurones express VAB-7, have posteriorly directed axons, express ACR-5 and lack expression of the homeodomain protein UNC-4. In a vab-7 mutant, ectopic UNC-4 represses acr-5 and induces an anteriorly directed DB axon trajectory. Thus, vab-7 indirectly promotes DB-specific gene expression and posteriorly directed axon outgrowth by preventing UNC-4 repression of DB differentiation. Ectopic expression of VAB-7 also induces DB traits in an unc-4-independent manner, suggesting that VAB-7 can act through a parallel pathway. This work supports a model in which a complementary pair of homeodomain transcription factors (VAB-7 and UNC-4) specifies differences between DA and DB neurones through inhibition of the alternative fates. The recent findings that Even-skipped transcriptional repressor activity specifies neurone identity and axon guidance in the mouse and Drosophila motoneurone circuit points to an ancient origin for homeoprotein-dependent mechanisms of neuronal differentiation in the metazoan nerve cord.
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Kuo, Jason J., Martijn Schonewille, Teepu Siddique, Annet N. A. Schults, Ronggen Fu, Peter R. Bär, Roberta Anelli, C. J. Heckman, and Alfons B. A. Kroese. "Hyperexcitability of Cultured Spinal Motoneurons From Presymptomatic ALS Mice." Journal of Neurophysiology 91, no. 1 (January 2004): 571–75. http://dx.doi.org/10.1152/jn.00665.2003.
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ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis) is an adult-onset and deadly neurodegenerative disease characterized by a progressive and selective loss of motoneurons. Transgenic mice overexpressing a mutated human gene (G93A) coding for the enzyme SOD1 (Cu/Zn superoxide dismutase) develop a motoneuron disease resembling ALS in humans. In this generally accepted ALS model, we tested the electrophysiological properties of individual embryonic and neonatal spinal motoneurons in culture by measuring a wide range of electrical properties influencing motoneuron excitability during current clamp. There were no differences in the motoneuron resting potential, input conductance, action potential shape, or afterhyperpolarization between G93A and control motoneurons. The relationship between the motoneuron's firing frequency and injected current (f-I relation) was altered. The slope of the f-I relation and the maximal firing rate of the G93A motoneurons were much greater than in the control motoneurons. Differences in spontaneous synaptic input were excluded as a cause of increased excitability. This finding identifies a markedly elevated intrinsic electrical excitability in cultured embryonic and neonatal mutant G93A spinal motoneurons. We conclude that the observed intrinsic motoneuron hyperexcitability is induced by the SOD1 toxic gain-of-function through an aberration in the process of action potential generation. This hyperexcitability may play a crucial role in the pathogenesis of ALS as the motoneurons were cultured from presymptomatic mice.
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PAUL, D. H., and B. L. ROBERTS. "Spinal Neuronal activity During the Pectoral Fin Reflex of the Dogfish: Pathways For Reflex Generation and Cerebellar Control." Journal of Experimental Biology 148, no. 1 (January 1, 1990): 403–14. http://dx.doi.org/10.1242/jeb.148.1.403.
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ingle units were recorded from the spinal cord of decerebrate dogfish (Scyliorhinus canicula) during pectoral fin reflexes (PFR) evoked by electrical pulse trains to the fin. The units were classified as primary afferent neurones, motoneurones or interneurones. Motoneurones discharged for limited (and various) periods during the reflex at latencies of 20 ms or more. There was no evidence for monosynaptic activation by primary afferents. Short-latency (S) units received monosynaptic input from fast-conducting afferents at latencies (<20 ms) appropriate for pre-motor interneurones. However, excitation of individual S-units by intracellular current injection never evoked motoneurone discharges, suggesting that convergence is necessary for motoneurone activation. Intracellular recordings from S-units which discharged for periods longer than the duration of the afferent volley generated by the fin stimulus showed that they receive other inputs in addition to those from primary afferent fibres. Intermediate-latency (I) units had similar properties to S-units except for a longer latency (>30ms), which ruled out monosynaptic excitation by fast-conducting afferents. Antidromic activation of S- and I-units by high spinal stimulation was rarely seen and orthodromic driving was also uncommon. A significant number of interneurones with latencies greater than 60 ms (L-units) were antidromically activated by high spinal stimulation. Their discharges were often long-lasting (>1 s) and we suggest that they may provide input to the cerebellum during the PFR.
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Power, Kevin E., Evan J. Lockyer, Davis A. Forman, and Duane C. Button. "Modulation of motoneurone excitability during rhythmic motor outputs." Applied Physiology, Nutrition, and Metabolism 43, no. 11 (November 2018): 1176–85. http://dx.doi.org/10.1139/apnm-2018-0077.
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In quadrupeds, special circuity located within the spinal cord, referred to as central pattern generators (CPGs), is capable of producing complex patterns of activity such as locomotion in the absence of descending input. During these motor outputs, the electrical properties of spinal motoneurones are modulated such that the motoneurone is more easily activated. Indirect evidence suggests that like quadrupeds, humans also have spinally located CPGs capable of producing locomotor outputs, albeit descending input is considered to be of greater importance. Whether motoneurone properties are reconfigured in a similar manner to those of quadrupeds is unclear. The purpose of this review is to summarize our current state of knowledge regarding the modulation of motoneurone excitability during CPG-mediated motor outputs using animal models. This will be followed by more recent work initially aimed at understanding changes in motoneurone excitability during CPG-mediated motor outputs in humans, which quickly expanded to also include supraspinal excitability.
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Zill, S. N. "Plasticity and proprioception in insects. II. Modes of reflex action of the locust metathoracic femoral chordotonal organ." Journal of Experimental Biology 116, no. 1 (May 1, 1985): 463–80. http://dx.doi.org/10.1242/jeb.116.1.463.
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Reflex responses of tibial motoneurones were examined during mechanical stimulation of the femoral chordotonal organ, a joint angle receptor of the locust hindleg. Step displacements of the main ligament of the organ, mimicking 10–15 degree changes in joint angle, produced different patterns of discharge in motoneurones (1) when the leg was resting against a support and (2) when the support was removed to induce active searching movements. Tibial motoneurones showed resistance reflex responses to oppose the apparent joint movement when the leg rested against a support. Resistance reflexes consisted of constant, short latency excitatory responses followed by discharges that varied in intensity (gain) and degree of tonic coupling. These variations were not due to simple summation with other inputs to motoneurones. Responses changed during periods of active searching movements. Tibial flexor motoneurones fired phasically in response to apparent joint movement in any direction. Tibial extensor motoneurones were generally inhibited by chordotonal inputs. These reflex changes are not simple reflex ‘reversals’, but represent more complex changes in reflex mode. Potential functions of each of these reflex modes and the need for plasticity in reflexes of the chordotonal organ are discussed.
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Consoulas, C., R. Hustert, and G. Theophilidis. "THE MULTISEGMENTAL MOTOR SUPPLY TO TRANSVERSE MUSCLES DIFFERS IN A CRICKET AND A BUSHCRICKET." Journal of Experimental Biology 185, no. 1 (December 1, 1993): 335–55. http://dx.doi.org/10.1242/jeb.185.1.335.
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Most abdominal sternites of the cricket Gryllus bimaculatus and the bushcricket Decticus albifrons are bridged by a transverse muscle (TM) which supports expiratory movements. In the cricket, ventilatory contractions are controlled both within each segment, by a bilateral pair of excitatory motoneurones in the abdominal ganglion supplying the left and right halves of the TM independently, and intersegmentally, by peripheral collaterals of homologous motoneurones from adjacent segments. The axons of these motoneurones run in the ipsilateral paramedian nerve. This unique divergence of excitatory motoneurones to different muscles also results in massive convergence of excitatory inputs from different ganglia, especially on the TMs of the middle abdominal segments. TM contraction rates are increased by this intersegmentally divergent and convergent motor supply, especially in the middle abdominal segments. In bushcrickets, each transverse muscle in segments 3–7 is innervated bilaterally by four pairs of neurones: (i) two pairs of contralateral excitatory motoneurones with axons that diverge, supplying two adacent muscles; (ii) one pair of contralateral excitatory neurones found in the second anterior ganglion and (iii) a pair of median inhibitory neurones in the segmental ganglion. Transverse muscles 2 and 8 receive reduced innervation. The excitatory motoneurones generate slow excitatory postsynaptic potentials (EPSPs), which must sum to cause muscle contractions. During ventilation, contralateral paired transverse motoneurones fire at similar frequencies, thus sychronizing the contractions of the left and right halves of the muscle so that the whole muscle acts as a single unit.
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RAJASHEKHAR, K. P., and J. L. WILKENS. "Control of ‘Pulmonary’ Pressure and Coordination with Gill Ventilation in the Shore Crab Carcinus Maenas." Journal of Experimental Biology 155, no. 1 (January 1, 1991): 147–64. http://dx.doi.org/10.1242/jeb.155.1.147.
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In the shore crab, Carcinus maenas (L.), forward ventilation creates negative pulses of hydrostatic pressure while reversed ventilation causes dramatic positive pressure fluctuations in the branchial chamber. These pressures are transmitted via the gills to the haemolymph of the open circulatory system. The branchiostegal sinus, which is a compliant chamber, may function as a reservoir for displaced haemolymph and may operate as an accessory pump driven by the action of the dorsoventral (DV) muscles. A band of dorsoventral muscles controls the volume of the branchiostegal sinuses. The muscular activity is coordinated with ventilatory activity and may assist in regulating pressure fluctuations caused by ventilatory pressure pulses. During a ventilatory reversal, the haemolymph displaced from the gills is added to the volume of haemolymph in the open circulatory system and this haemolymph may be accommodated in the branchiostegal sinus by relaxation of the DV muscles. Artificially regulating the pressure either in the branchial chamber or in the branchiostegal sinus reflexively alters DV muscle activity, which suggests the occurrence of baroreceptors in this crab. The branchiostegal nerve that innervates the DV muscles contains five neurones identified by cobalt backfills. Three of them are median and two are contralateral. The dendritic field of each neurone is confined to its respective hemiganglia. The electrical activity of one of the motoneurones in the branchiostegal nerve corresponds to the activity of the DV muscles. In vitro observations of the activity of branchiostegal motoneurones in relation to ventilatory motoneurone activity indicate that both are centrally coupled and support the hypothesis that the branchiostegal motoneurones are influenced by the ventilatory central pattern generator.
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PEARSON, K. G., and J. M. RAMIREZ. "Influence of input from the Forewing Stretch Receptors on Motoneurones in Flying Locusts." Journal of Experimental Biology 151, no. 1 (July 1, 1990): 317–40. http://dx.doi.org/10.1242/jeb.151.1.317.
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1. Previous studies on the forewing stretch receptors (FSRs) of locusts have suggested that feedback from these receptors during flight contributes to the excitation of depressor motoneurones and reduces the duration of depolarizations in elevator motoneurones. We have investigated these proposals by measuring the timing of FSR activity relative to depressor activity and by examining the effects of stimulating the FSRs on the membrane potential oscillations in flight motoneurones. 2. Activity in the FSRs was recorded in tethered intact animals flying in a windstream and in preparations that allowed intracellular recordings from motoneurones during flight activity. The timing of FSR activity was similar in both preparations. In most animals we observed that at normal wingbeat frequencies (about 20 Hz) the activity in the FSRs commenced after the onset of activity in the wing depressor muscles. As wingbeat frequency declined there was a progressive advance of FSR activity relative to depressor activity. Most of the spikes in each burst of FSR activity occurred during the time that the membrane potential in depressor motoneurones was repolarizing. 3. Electrical stimulation of the FSRs timed to follow the onset of depressor activity slowed the rate of repolarization, decreased the peak hyperpolarization and increased the rate of the following depolarization in depressor motoneurones. In elevator motoneurones, the same pattern of FSR stimulation produced an additional excitatory input during the depolarization phase and, at low wingbeat frequencies, reduced the duration of the peak depolarizations. The reduction in the duration of the peak depolarization in elevator motoneurones was not strongly correlated to the reduction in cycle period. 4. We propose that the primary reason why input from the FSRs increases wingbeat frequency is because this input reduces the degree of hyperpolarization in depressor neurones and thus promotes an earlier onset of the next depolarization in these neurones.
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HEAD, STEWART I., and BRIAN M. H. BUSH. "PROPRIOCEPTIVE INPUT FROM TWO BASAL JOINT STRETCH RECEPTORS TO LEG MOTONEURONES IN THE ISOLATED THORACIC GANGLION OF THE SHORE CRAB." Journal of Experimental Biology 163, no. 1 (February 1, 1992): 187–208. http://dx.doi.org/10.1242/jeb.163.1.187.
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The reflex effects and interactions of two proprioceptors upon motoneurones supplying the four basal leg muscles of the shore crab Carcinus maenas have been studied in a new in vitro preparation consisting of the thoracic-coxal muscle receptor organ (TCMRO) and the coxo-basal chordotonal organ (CBCO) isolated together with the whole thoracic ganglion complex to which they were still connected by their afferent nerves. Each receptor strand was stimulated mechanically, while recording intracellularly from motoneurones in the ganglion, and extracellularly from the cut motor nerves innervating the promotor and remotor muscles of the thoracic-coxal (T—C) joint and the levator and depressor muscles of the coxo-basal (C—B) joint. Stretch of the TCMRO evoked reflex firing in several units in the promotor motor nerve, confirming previous studies. In addition to this ‘intrajoint’ reflex, however, TCMRO stretch also elicited ‘interjoint’ reflex responses in motoneurones of both the levator and depressor muscles. Similarly, stretch and release of the CBCO produced intrajoint resistance reflexes in levator and depressor motoneurones, respectively, as well as interjoint reflexes in promotor and remotor motoneurones. In general, the CBCO produced stronger reflex effects in all four motor nerves than did the TCMRO. Intracellular recordings from individual motoneurones of all four muscles revealed that the majority of them received convergent input from both proprioceptors. The importance of such convergent input in vivo is discussed
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BÜSCHGES, ANSGAR. "Nonspiking Pathways in a Joint-control Loop of the Stick Insect Carausius Morosus." Journal of Experimental Biology 151, no. 1 (July 1, 1990): 133–60. http://dx.doi.org/10.1242/jeb.151.1.133.
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In the stick insect Carausius morosus (Phasmida) intracellular recordings were made from local nonspiking interneurones involved in the reflex activation of the extensor motoneurones of the femur-tibia joint during ramp-like stimulation of the transducer of this joint, the femoral chordotonal organ (ChO). The nonspiking interneurones in the femur-tibia control loop were characterized by their inputs from the ChO, their output properties onto the extensor motoneurones and their morphology. Eight different morphological and physiological types of nonspiking interneurones are described that are involved in the femur-tibia control loop. The results show that velocity signals from the ChO are the most important movement parameter processed by the nonspiking interneurones. Altering the membrane potential of these interneurones had marked effects on the reflex activation in the extensor motoneurones as the interneurones were able to increase or decrease the response of the participating motoneurones. The processing of information by the nonspiking pathways showed another remarkable aspect: nonspiking interneurones were found to process sensory information from the ChO onto extensor motoneurones in a way that seems not always to support the generation of the visible resistance reflexes in the extensor tibiae motoneurones in response to imposed flexion and extension movements of the joint. The present investigation demonstrated interneuronal pathways in the joint-control loop that show ‘assisting’ characteristics.
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Irvine, Sian, and Jessica Kwok. "Perineuronal Nets in Spinal Motoneurones: Chondroitin Sulphate Proteoglycan around Alpha Motoneurones." International Journal of Molecular Sciences 19, no. 4 (April 12, 2018): 1172. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/ijms19041172.
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Harris-Warrick, R. M., and A. H. Cohen. "Serotonin modulates the central pattern generator for locomotion in the isolated lamprey spinal cord." Journal of Experimental Biology 116, no. 1 (May 1, 1985): 27–46. http://dx.doi.org/10.1242/jeb.116.1.27.
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The central pattern generator for locomotion in the spinal cord of the lamprey can be activated in vitro by the addition of D-glutamate to the bathing saline. Serotonin has no effects when bath-applied alone, but it modulates the D-glutamate-activated swimming pattern. Three major effects are observed: a dose-dependent reduction in the frequency of rhythmic ventral root burst discharge; enhancement of the intensity of burst discharge, due in part to the recruitment of previously inactive motoneurones; prolongation of the intersegmental phase lag. Motoneurone activation appears to result from enhanced synaptic drive from the central pattern generator; no direct effects of serotonin on the motoneurones themselves (resting potential, input resistance or threshold for action potential generation) were observed. Theoretical and experimental studies suggest that the prolongation of the intersegmental phase lag results at least in part from differential effects of serotonin on segmental oscillators in different parts of the spinal cord. Isolated caudal pieces of the cord were more strongly affected by serotonin than isolated rostral pieces. We propose that serotonin may be an endogenous modulator of the central pattern generator for locomotion in the lamprey. It may have a role in the generation of a family of related undulatory movements (swimming, crawling, burrowing) by a single central pattern generator.
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Taylor, A., R. Durbaba, and P. H. Ellaway. "Direct and indirect assessment of γ-motor firing patterns." Canadian Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology 82, no. 8-9 (July 1, 2004): 793–802. http://dx.doi.org/10.1139/y04-053.
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The study of the patterns of γ-motor activity which accompany natural contractions has been long and difficult, and has not as yet led to general agreement. In this review we have simplified matters by considering the case of locomotion in the cat only, and we have avoided discussion of the various hypotheses which have been advanced to provide general schemes of γ control for a wide range of movements. The development of the subject is shown to depend very much on devising ingenious methods applicable to reduced and intact animals. Direct recording from γ-motoneurones has only been possible in reduced preparations, whereas indirect assessment of γ activity from spindle afferent recordings was used in these and in intact animals. At this point in time, we still have no direct recordings from γ-motoneurones in normally behaving animals, but those obtained in decerebrate animals show distinct patterns of modulation for static and dynamic types with particular temporal relation to the stepping movements. The spindle recordings in intact animals potentially provide the most important information, and the problems of interpretation, which have previously caused difficulties, are beginning to be solved through the insights obtained from the reduced preparations.Key words: locomotion, gamma motoneurons, muscle spindles.
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Gandevia, S. C. "Mind, muscles and motoneurones." Journal of Science and Medicine in Sport 2, no. 3 (October 1999): 167–80. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/s1440-2440(99)80171-6.
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McLarnon, James G. "Potassium currents in motoneurones." Progress in Neurobiology 47, no. 6 (December 1995): 513–31. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/0301-0082(95)00032-1.
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Akay, Turgay, Sebastian Haehn, Josef Schmitz, and Ansgar Büschges. "Signals From Load Sensors Underlie Interjoint Coordination During Stepping Movements of the Stick Insect Leg." Journal of Neurophysiology 92, no. 1 (July 2004): 42–51. http://dx.doi.org/10.1152/jn.01271.2003.
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During stance and swing phase of a walking stick insect, the retractor coxae (RetCx) and protractor coxae (ProCx) motoneurons and muscles supplying the thorax-coxa (TC)-joint generate backward and forward movements of the leg. Their activity is tightly coupled to the movement of the more distal leg segments, i.e., femur, tibia, and tarsus. We used the single middle leg preparation to study how this coupling is generated. With only the distal leg segments of the middle leg being free to move, motoneuronal activity of the de-afferented and -efferented TC-joint is similarly coupled to leg stepping. RetCx motoneurons are active during stance and ProCx motoneurons during swing. We studied whether sensory signals are involved in this coordination of TC-joint motoneuronal activity. Ablation of the load measuring campaniform sensilla (CS) revealed that they substantially contribute to the coupling of TC-joint motoneuronal activity to leg stepping. Individually ablating trochanteral and femoral CS revealed the trochanteral CS to be necessary for establishing the coupling between leg stepping and coxal motoneuron activity. When the locomotor system was active and generated alternating bursts of activity in ProCx and RetCx motoneurons, stimulation of the CS by rearward bending of the femur in otherwise de-afferented mesothoracic ganglion terminated ongoing ProCx motoneuronal activity and initiated RetCx motoneuronal activity. We show that cuticular strain signals from the trochanteral CS play a major role in shaping TC-joint motoneuronal activity during walking and contribute to their coordination with the stepping pattern of the distal leg joints. We present a model for the sensory control of timing of motoneuronal activity in walking movements of the single middle leg.
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Chagnaud, Boris P., Michele C. Zee, Robert Baker, and Andrew H. Bass. "Innovations in motoneuron synchrony drive rapid temporal modulations in vertebrate acoustic signaling." Journal of Neurophysiology 107, no. 12 (June 15, 2012): 3528–42. http://dx.doi.org/10.1152/jn.00030.2012.
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Rapid temporal modulation of acoustic signals among several vertebrate lineages has recently been shown to depend on the actions of superfast muscles. We hypothesized that such fast events, known to require synchronous activation of muscle fibers, would rely on motoneuronal properties adapted to generating a highly synchronous output to sonic muscles. Using intracellular in vivo recordings, we identified a suite of premotor network inputs and intrinsic motoneuronal properties synchronizing the oscillatory-like, simultaneous activation of superfast muscles at high gamma frequencies in fish. Motoneurons lacked spontaneous activity, firing synchronously only at the frequency of premotor excitatory input. Population-level motoneuronal output generated a spike-like, vocal nerve volley that directly determines muscle contraction rate and, in turn, natural call frequency. In the absence of vocal output, motoneurons showed low excitability and a weak afterhyperpolarization, leading to rapid accommodation in firing rate. By contrast, vocal activity was accompanied by a prominent afterhyperpolarization, indicating a dependency on network activity. Local injection of a GABAA receptor antagonist demonstrated the necessity of electrophysiologically and immunohistochemically confirmed inhibitory GABAergic input for motoneuronal synchrony and vocalization. Numerous transneuronally labeled motoneurons following single-cell neurobiotin injection together with electrophysiological collision experiments confirmed gap junctional coupling, known to contribute to synchronous activity in other neural networks. Motoneuronal synchrony at the premotor input frequency was maintained during differential recruitment of variably sized motoneurons. Differential motoneuron recruitment led, however, to amplitude modulation (AM) of vocal output and, hence, natural call AM. In summary, motoneuronal intrinsic properties, in particular low excitability, predisposed vocal motoneurons to the synchronizing influences of premotor inputs to translate a temporal input code into a coincident and extremely synchronous, but variable-amplitude, output code. We propose an analogous suite of neuronal properties as a key innovation underlying similarly rapid acoustic events observed among amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals.
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Hess, Dietmar, and Ansgar Büschges. "Role of Proprioceptive Signals From an Insect Femur-Tibia Joint in Patterning Motoneuronal Activity of an Adjacent Leg Joint." Journal of Neurophysiology 81, no. 4 (April 1, 1999): 1856–65. http://dx.doi.org/10.1152/jn.1999.81.4.1856.
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Role of proprioceptive signals from an insect femur-tibia joint in patterning motoneuronal activity of an adjacent leg joint. Interjoint reflex function of the insect leg contributes to postural control at rest or to movement control during locomotor movements. In the stick insect ( Carausius morosus), we investigated the role that sensory signals from the femoral chordotonal organ (fCO), the transducer of the femur-tibia (FT) joint, play in patterning motoneuronal activity in the adjacent coxa-trochanteral (CT) joint when the joint control networks are in the movement control mode of the active behavioral state. In the active behavioral state, sensory signals from the fCO induced transitions of activity between antagonistic motoneuron pools, i.e., the levator trochanteris and the depressor trochanteris motoneurons. As such, elongation of the fCO, signaling flexion of the FT joint, terminated depressor motoneuron activity and initiated activity in levator motoneurons. Relaxation of the fCO, signaling extension of the FT joint, induced the opposite transition by initiating depressor motoneuron activity and terminating levator motoneuron activity. This interjoint influence of sensory signals from the fCO was independent of the generation of the intrajoint reflex reversal in the FT joint, i.e., the “active reaction,” which is released by elongation signals from the fCO. The generation of these transitions in activity of trochanteral motoneurons barely depended on position or velocity signals from the fCO. This contrasts with the situation in the resting behavioral state when interjoint reflex action markedly depends on actual fCO stimulus parameters, i.e., position and velocity signals. In the active behavioral state, movement signals from the fCO obviously trigger or release centrally generated transitions in motoneuron activity, e.g., by affecting central rhythm generating networks driving trochanteral motoneuron pools. This conclusion was tested by stimulating the fCO in “fictive rhythmic” preparations, activated by the muscarinic agonist pilocarpine in the otherwise isolated and deafferented mesothoracic ganglion. In this situation, sensory signals from the fCO did in fact reset and entrain rhythmic activity in trochanteral motoneurons. The results indicate for the first time that when the stick insect locomotor system is active, sensory signals from the proprioceptor of one leg joint, i.e., the fCO, pattern motor activity in an adjacent leg joint, i.e., the CT joint, by affecting the central rhythm generating network driving the motoneurons of the adjacent joint.
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Büschges, A., and H. Wolf. "Gain changes in sensorimotor pathways of the locust leg." Journal of Experimental Biology 199, no. 11 (November 1, 1996): 2437–45. http://dx.doi.org/10.1242/jeb.199.11.2437.
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Feedback systems that control the leg joints of animals must be highly flexible in adapting to different behavioural tasks. One manifestation of such flexibility is changes in the gain of joint control networks. The femur­tibia (FT) control network of the locust leg is one of the feedback systems most thoroughly studied with regard to its neural circuitry. Despite excellent information concerning network topology, however, actual gain changes and their underlying mechanisms have not yet been examined because of the marked spontaneous variations in the action of the control network for this joint. We describe a behavioural situation and a preparation in which the locust (Locusta migratoria L.) FT control network exhibits reproducible changes in gain, allowing investigation of the neuronal basis of gain control. After ('fictive') flight motor activity, the gain of resistance reflexes in the FT joint of the locust middle leg is significantly decreased, with the flexor tibiae muscles being affected more strongly than the extensor muscles. Immediately after flight motor activity, the gain may be as low as 30 % of pre-flight levels. It returns to pre-flight values in under 150 s. The decrease in gain following flight motor activity is due to a decrease in motoneurone recruitment in the resistance reflex elicited by stimulation of the appropriate mechanoreceptor, the femoral chordotonal organ. Motoneurone recruitment is changed as a result of a drastic decline in the stimulus-related synaptic input to the motoneurones, which appears to be produced exclusively at the level of the pre-motor network. Two factors led to this conclusion: first, we found no indication of changes in membrane potential or membrane conductance of the tibia flexor and extensor motoneurones; second, recording from identified pre-motor nonspiking interneurones demonstrated that these may be involved in the observed gain changes. The putative behavioural relevance is discussed.
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Dubas, F., R. T. Hanlon, G. P. Ferguson, and H. M. Pinsker. "Localization and stimulation of chromatophore motoneurones in the brain of the squid, Lolliguncula brevis." Journal of Experimental Biology 121, no. 1 (March 1, 1986): 1–25. http://dx.doi.org/10.1242/jeb.121.1.1.
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The relatively simple chromatophore system of the squid, Lolliguncula brevis, was studied with combined behavioural, morphological and electrophysiological methods in order to understand how the chromatophore patterns in the skin are organized at the level of the posterior chromatophore lobes (PCL). There are nine simple chromatic components of patterning in L. brevis. Retrograde transport of horseradish-peroxidase from chromatophores in the mantle skin established that the chromatophore motoneurones are located in the PCL. Focal threshold stimulation of the PCL in perfused, semi-intact preparations showed that the motor fields of individual chromatophore motoneurones are compact, including 2–60 chromatophores, generally of the same colour. Adjacent motoneurones in the lobe do not necessarily have adjacent motor fields in the skin.
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ElBasiouny, Sherif M., and Vivian K. Mushahwar. "Suppressing the excitability of spinal motoneurons by extracellularly applied electrical fields: insights from computer simulations." Journal of Applied Physiology 103, no. 5 (November 2007): 1824–36. http://dx.doi.org/10.1152/japplphysiol.00362.2007.
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The effect of extracellularly applied electrical fields on neuronal excitability and firing behavior is attributed to the interaction between neuronal morphology and the spatial distribution and level of differential polarization induced by the applied field in different elements of the neuron. The presence of voltage-gated ion channels that mediate persistent inward currents (PICs) on the dendrites of spinal motoneurons enhances the influence of electrical fields on the motoneuronal firing behavior. The goal of the present study was to investigate, with a realistic motoneuron computer model, the effects of extracellularly applied electrical fields on the excitability of spinal motoneurons with the aim of reducing the increased motoneuronal excitability after spinal cord injury (SCI). Our results suggest that electrical fields could suppress the excitability of motoneurons and reduce their firing rate significantly by modulating the magnitude of their dendritic PIC. This effect was achieved at different field directions, intensities, and polarities. The reduction in motoneuronal firing rate resulted from the reduction in the magnitude of the dendritic PIC reaching the soma by the effect of the applied electrical field. This reduction in PIC was attributed to the dendritic field-induced differential polarization and the nonlinear current-voltage relationship of the dendritic PIC-mediating channels. Because of the location of the motoneuronal somata and initial segment with respect to the dendrites, these structures were minimally polarized by the applied field compared with the extended dendrites. In conclusion, electrical fields could be used for suppressing the hyperexcitability of spinal motoneurons after SCI and reducing the level of spasticity.
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Katakura, N., and S. H. Chandler. "An iontophoretic analysis of the pharmacologic mechanisms responsible for trigeminal motoneuronal discharge during masticatory-like activity in the guinea pig." Journal of Neurophysiology 63, no. 2 (February 1, 1990): 356–69. http://dx.doi.org/10.1152/jn.1990.63.2.356.
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1. The effects of iontophoretic application of the excitatory amino acid antagonists kynurenic acid (KYN) and DL-2-amino-5-phosphonovaleric acid (APV), as well as the monoamines serotonin (5-HT) and norepinephrine (NE), on extracellularly recorded jaw opener motoneuron [digastric motoneuron (DIG)] discharge during cortically induced rhythmical masticatory-like activity (RMA) were examined in the anesthetized guinea pig. 2. Iontophoretic application of KYN, a broad-spectrum amino acid antagonist, suppressed the motoneuronal discharge evoked by short pulse train stimulation of the cortex for most cells tested. In contrast, iontophoretic application of APV, a specific N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) antagonist, was usually without effect on the motoneuronal discharge evoked by short pulse train stimulation. 3. During RMA evoked by repetitive cortical stimulation, both KYN and APV suppressed rhythmical DIG motoneuronal discharge in many cells tested. 4. These data suggest that excitatory amino acid receptors on jaw opener motoneurons are involved in activation of RMA. It is proposed that the short-latency rapid excitation of jaw opener motoneurons, which occurs during both short pulse train cortical stimulation and RMA induced by repetitive cortical stimulation, is mediated, at least in part, by non-NMDA receptors. It is further suggested that the large-amplitude, long-duration slow rhythmical oscillations, which occur in the membrane potential of jaw opener motoneurons during RMA induced by repetitive cortical stimulation, are mediated, at least in part, by NMDA receptors. 5. Iontophoretic application of NE or 5-HT with low currents (less than 20 nA) produced a facilitation of digastric motoneuronal discharge during cycle-triggered glutamate application, short pulse train cortical stimulation, and RMA evoked by repetitive cortical stimulation. These facilitatory effects on motoneuronal discharge started within 1 min of drug application, reached a peak at approximately 3 min that persisted for several minutes after the application period, and recovered to control levels within 10-15 min. Direct application of NE or 5-HT, in the absence of chemical or synaptic activation, failed to activate these motoneurons. However, iontophoretic application of either monoamine could facilitate and bring to threshold rhythmical motoneuronal discharges during subthreshold repetitive cortical stimulation. 6. Iontophoretic application of methysergide, a 5-HT antagonist, and phentolamine, an alpha adrenoreceptor blocker, both produced a selective and reversible blockade of the facilitatory effects of 5-HT and NE, respectively, on motoneuronal discharge during cortically induced RMA. In contrast, iontophoretic application of sotalol, a beta adrenoreceptor blocker, had no effect on the NE-induced facilitation of RMA.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)
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MOFFETT, STACIA, DANIEL P. YOX, LINDA B. KAHAN, and RICHARD L. RIDGWAY. "Innervation of the Anterior and Posterior Levator Muscles of the Fifth Leg of the Crab Carcinus Maenas." Journal of Experimental Biology 127, no. 1 (January 1, 1987): 229–48. http://dx.doi.org/10.1242/jeb.127.1.229.
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In the fifth pair of legs, the anterior levator muscle of the basi-ischiopodite (AL) consists of a dorsal thoracic head (ALd), two closely aligned ventral thoracic heads (ALv) and a small coxal head (ALc). Major thoracic subdivisions are separately innervated, whereas the nerve innervating the coxal head projects from ALd. The posterior levator (PL) is located in the coxa and is separately innervated. Nerve recordings, dye backfilling, muscle fibre recordings and nerve crosssections yielded somewhat different estimates for the levator motor innervation. Nerve backfills reveal at least 10 motoneurones supplying AL: six shared by ALd and ALv, one unique to ALv and three unique to ALd. Nerve recordings reveal six motoneurones supplying ALd and five supplying ALv. Four (including the common inhibitor) are shared by ALd and ALv and six project from ALd to ALc. Most AL muscle fibres are innervated by two or three motoneurones, but fibres innervated by five were encountered. Postsynaptic potentials ranging from small (<1-5 mV) to large (15–25 mV) were found distributed throughout AL. PL is innervated by two excitors not shared with AL and by the common inhibitor. Electron micrographs reveal more axons than any of the methods for counting motoneurones. Neurones with axon diameters below 3 μm are likely to be sensory.
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Taylor, Anthony. "Respiratory drive to thoracic motoneurones." Journal of Physiology 579, no. 3 (March 14, 2007): 566. http://dx.doi.org/10.1113/jphysiol.2007.128892.
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Alory, Alysson, Arnaud Jacquier, David Gentien, Pierre de la Grange, and Georg Haase. "Facteurs neurotrophiques pour les motoneurones." médecine/sciences 33, no. 10 (October 2017): 835–39. http://dx.doi.org/10.1051/medsci/20173310008.
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Piette, Patrice. "Le système des motoneurones miroirs." Kinésithérapie, la Revue 10, no. 102 (June 2010): 20–21. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/s1779-0123(10)74852-x.
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Binder, Marc D., and Randall K. Powers. "Synaptic integration in spinal motoneurones." Journal of Physiology-Paris 93, no. 1-2 (January 1999): 71–79. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/s0928-4257(99)80137-5.
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Powers, R. K., F. R. Robinson, M. A. Konodi, and M. D. Binder. "Effective synaptic current can be estimated from measurements of neuronal discharge." Journal of Neurophysiology 68, no. 3 (September 1, 1992): 964–68. http://dx.doi.org/10.1152/jn.1992.68.3.964.
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1. The basic question of how motoneurons transform synaptic inputs into spike train outputs remains unresolved, despite detailed knowledge of their morphology, electrophysiology, and synaptic connectivity. We have approached this problem by making measurements of a synaptic input under steady-state conditions and combining them with quantitative assessments of their effects on the discharge rates of cat spinal motoneurons. 2. We used a modified voltage-clamp technique to measure the steady-state effective synaptic currents (IN) produced by rubrospinal input to cat triceps surae motoneurons. In the same motoneurons we measured the slope of the firing rate-injected current (f-i) relation in the primary range. We then reactivated the rubrospinal input during steady, repetitive firing to assess its effect on motoneuron discharge rate. 3. We found that changes in the steady-state discharge rate of a motoneuron produced by this synaptic input could be described simply as the product of the net effective synaptic current measured at the soma and the slope of the motoneuron's f-i relation. This expression essentially redefines synaptic efficacy in terms of a cell's basic input-output function. Further, measurements of effective synaptic current simplify the task of estimating synaptic efficacy, because detailed knowledge of neither the electrotonic architecture of the postsynaptic cell nor of the locations of the presynaptic boutons is required.
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Lorez, M. "Neural control of hindleg steering in flight in the locust." Journal of Experimental Biology 198, no. 4 (April 1, 1995): 869–75. http://dx.doi.org/10.1242/jeb.198.4.869.
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Corrective flight steering with the hindlegs was investigated in intact tethered flying locusts inside a wind tunnel as well as in animals dissected for intracellular recording and showing fictive flight activity. In intact tethered flying animals, activity in the second coxal abductor muscle (M126) was highly correlated with hindleg steering and was coupled to the elevator phase of the flight cycle. Fictive flight and steering could also be elicited in animals dissected for intracellular recording of motoneurones innervating M126. During fictive flight activity, motoneurones 126 were rhythmically excited in the elevator phase, presumably from central elements of the neuronal oscillator generating the flight motor pattern, as is the case for motoneurones innervating wing muscles. During fictive straight flight, this input was subthreshold, and it could be demonstrated that simulated deviation from the flight course resulted in recruitment of motoneurones 126. Statistical analysis of the latencies of fast muscle spikes in M126 and in one wing elevator muscle showed that both received common input during flight steering. One source of this common input was identified as the sensory information from the lateral ocelli, which play an important role in the detection of course deviation. The experiments demonstrated that processing in the sensory-motor system for hindleg steering is probably organized in a very similar way to that responsible for steering with the wings.
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Murayama, M., and M. Takahata. "Neuronal mechanisms underlying the facilitatory control of uropod steering behaviour during treadmill walking in crayfish. II. Modulation Of uropod motoneurone excitation by leg proprioception." Journal of Experimental Biology 201, no. 9 (May 1, 1998): 1295–305. http://dx.doi.org/10.1242/jeb.201.9.1295.
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The synaptic activities underlying the uropod steering behaviour of crayfish evoked by tilting the substratum beneath the legs have been studied intracellularly in unanaesthetized animals standing or walking on a treadmill. The uropod motoneurones showed little or no synaptic response when the treadmill was tilted while the animal was in a quiescent state and the membrane potential was at its resting value. When the same stimulus was given while the animal was walking or in an active stance on the treadmill, the motoneurones showed transient much-enhanced excitatory or inhibitory responses to tilt, depending on the tilt direction. These responses were superimposed on a sustained level of background excitation so that the spike activity of the motoneurones either increased or decreased. Premotor nonspiking interneurones also showed little or no synaptic response to the tilt stimulus while the animal was resting, but greatly enhanced responses, in either a depolarizing or a hyperpolarizing direction, while the animal was walking or in the active-standing state. The results indicate that the proprioceptor inputs converging onto the uropod motoneurones, either directly or through premotor nonspiking interneurones, are gated not only in the uropod motor system in the terminal abdominal ganglion but also at as yet unidentified sites upstream in anterior ganglia, thus suggesting multiple gate control of the descending proprioceptor pathway.
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Wadepuhl, M. "Depression of excitatory motoneurones by a single neurone in the leech central nervous system." Journal of Experimental Biology 143, no. 1 (May 1, 1989): 509–27. http://dx.doi.org/10.1242/jeb.143.1.509.
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Intracellular staining techniques have been used to characterize the morphology of a newly identified neurone, cell 151, in the segmental ganglia of the leech. This neurone ramifies extensively within the neuropile and sends multiple extensions into roots and connectives. Strong dye coupling and non-rectifying electrical coupling were observed between the contralateral homologues. No action potentials were recorded from the cell body, but postsynaptic potentials and slow potential changes (greater than 1 s, greater than 15 mV) were observed. Upon injection of hyperpolarizing currents, the efferent spike activity, recorded extracellularly, was depressed in both the ipsi- and the contralateral roots of the ganglion. The depression was gradual and non-adapting and occurred reliably only within the ganglion where cell 151 is situated. Depolarization of cell 151 was without consequence for the tonic firing of isolated ganglia. Many identified excitatory motoneurones follow the hyperpolarization of cell 151. Currents can be exchanged between cell 151 and motoneurones via rectifying electrical synapses. Spontaneous hyperpolarizations of cell 151 were correlated with depression of spike frequencies, recorded in whole nerves as well as in identified motoneurones. The membrane potential of cell 151 was drastically altered by bursts from mechanosensory cells. The ability of cell 151 to distribute inhibition onto a great number of motoneurones and to curtail excessive neuronal activity is discussed.
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Chopek, Jeremy W., Patricia C. Sheppard, Kalan Gardiner, and Phillip F. Gardiner. "Serotonin receptor and KCC2 gene expression in lumbar flexor and extensor motoneurons posttransection with and without passive cycling." Journal of Neurophysiology 113, no. 5 (March 1, 2015): 1369–76. http://dx.doi.org/10.1152/jn.00550.2014.
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Sacrocaudal motoneuron gene expression is altered following a spinal transection. Of interest here is the regulation of serotonin (5-HT) receptors (R), glutamate receptor, metabotropic 1 (mGluR1), and potassium-chloride cotransporter (KCC2), which mediate motoneuron excitability, locomotor recovery, and spasticity posttransection. The examination of these genes in lumbar motoneurons posttransection has not been studied, which is necessary for developing potential pharmacological interventions aimed at restoring locomotion and/or reducing spasticity. Also, if activity is to be used to promote recovery or reduce spasticity postinjury, a further examination of neuromuscular activity on gene expression posttransection is warranted. The purpose of this study was to examine motoneuronal gene expression of 5-HT receptors, KCC2, and mGluR1 at 3 mo following a complete thoracic spinal cord transection, with and without the inclusion of daily passive cycling. Physiological hindlimb extensor and flexor motoneurons were differentially identified with two retrograde fluorescent tracers, allowing for the identification and separate harvesting of extensor and flexor motoneurons with laser capture microdissection and the subsequent examination of mRNA content using quantitative RT-PCR analysis. We demonstrate that posttransection 5-HT1AR, 5-HT2CR, and mGluR1 expression was downregulated, whereas the 5-HT2AR was upregulated. These alterations in gene expression were observed in both flexor and extensor motoneurons, whereas passive cycling influenced gene expression in extensor but not flexor motoneurons. Passive cycling in extensor motoneurons further enhanced 5-HT2AR expression and increased 5-HT7R and KCC2 expression. Our results demonstrate that passive cycling influences serotonin receptor and KCC2 gene expression and that extensor motoneurons compared with flexor motoneurons may be more plastic to activity-based interventions posttransection.
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Barrett, D. J., and E. W. Taylor. "The characteristics of cardiac vagal preganglionic motoneurones in the dogfish." Journal of Experimental Biology 117, no. 1 (July 1, 1985): 459–70. http://dx.doi.org/10.1242/jeb.117.1.459.
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Preganglionic vagal motoneurones supplying the heart of the dogfish have been located in the medulla by antidromic stimulation of the central cut end of the branchial cardiac branch of the vagus. They supplied axons with conduction velocities between 4.75 and 16.3 m s-1, which is similar to mammalian B fibres. Motoneurones were found in two locations: the rostromedial (N = 5) and lateral (N = 12) divisions of the vagal motor column. Their measured depths and rostrocaudal distributions with respect to obex corresponded with the location of branchial cardiac motoneurones determined by horseradish peroxidase (HRP) histochemistry. All the neurones located in the rostromedial division of the vagal motor column were spontaneously rhythmically active. Their activity contributed to the rhythmic, respiratory-related bursts in peripheral recordings of efferent activity from the branchial cardiac vagus. They could be induced to fire in a prolonged burst by mechanical stimulation of the gill arches. The neurones located lateral to the rostromedial division of the vagal motor column could be divided into three categories: (1) spontaneously, continuously active cells which could be induced to fire more frequently by mechanoreceptor stimulation, (2) silent cells which could be induced to fire by mechanoreceptor stimulation, (3) silent cells which did not respond to mechanoreceptor stimulation. It is concluded, from the response of the medial and two categories of lateral cells to mechanoreceptor stimulation (which results in a transient bradycardia), that branchial cardiac motoneurones from both these central locations exert a chronotropic influence on the heart.