Responses of nucleus reticularis tegmenti pontis neurons to vestibular stimulation in the rat

✍ Scribed by M. Taillanter; J. Lannou

• Publisher: Springer-Verlag
• Year: 1988
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 601 KB
• Volume: 69
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0014-4819
• DOI: 10.1007/bf00247587

✦ Synopsis

Forty-nine neurons were recorded in the nucleus reticularis tegmenti pontis (NRTP) during horizontal vestibular and/or optokinetic stimulation in immobilized pigmented rats. During optokinetic stimulation, the response of NRTP neurons was either unidirectional (51%) or bidirectional (49%). Histological reconstruction showed that unidirectional neurons were located in the dorsal-medial part of NRTP, and bidirectional neurons in the lateral part. All neurons exhibited a response during pure vestibular sinusoidal stimulation in the frequency range 0.025 Hz-0.2 Hz. NRTP neurons were divided into two groups according to their threshold to vestibular stimulation. Group A neurons had a low threshold, a low spontaneous activity and their firing frequency slowly increased with acceleration. Group B neurons showed opposite characteristics. Phase and gain analysis suggested that NRTP neurons carry a head velocity signal. After hemiflocculectomy, the gain of the vestibular response of contralateral NRTP neurons increased. From these data, the role of NRTP in the horizontal vestibulo-oculomotor is discussed.