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F Lepore

Publications and source records attributed to F Lepore.

At least 73 records · Page 4Linked to original sources
PubMed1988

Somatosensory receptive fields of fibres in the rostral corpus callosum of the cat.

The corpus callosum is the principal neocortical commissure which transmits lateralized information between the hemispheres. The aim of the present experiment was to study the receptive field (RF) properties of somatosensory callosal fibres in the cat. The callosum was approached under direct visual control and axonic responses were recorded under N2O anaesthesia using tungsten microelectrodes or, mostly, glass micropipettes. RFs representing all the sensory submodalities tested (light touch, medium and deep pressure, joint movement and light pinches) were found to be present in the axons which travelled through the callosum. Rapidly adapting units were more common than slowly adapting ones. The axial and para-axial portions of the body accounted for about three-fifths of all RFs, followed by the head (about one-fifth), with the rest responding to stimulation of the extremities. The medial borders of most of the unilateral RFs situated on the trunk and, to a lesser degree, the head, extended to the mid-line. The results are interpreted in terms of the roles of the corpus callosum in mid-line fusion and interhemispheric transfer.

Afferent Pathways↗
PubMed1988

Initial acquisition of visual discriminations following selective cortical lesions in cats.

Split-brain adult cats with various visual cortex lesions were tested for their ability to acquire several pattern discriminations using monocular vision. Different lesions were made in the two hemispheres to control for possible individual differences in learning speed due to factors other than the lesion. Results indicated that removal of either areas 17, 17 + 18, 18 + 19, or 19 did not abolish the ability to learn pattern discriminations. However, when compared to control animals, lesioned animals learned more slowly the various discriminations, especially subjects having lesions in 18 + 19. These results tend to confirm the hypothesis that the integrity of individual visual cortical areas for the perception and discrimination of simple patterns is important but not essential.

Animals↗
PubMed1987

Receptive field properties of somatosensory callosal fibres in the monkey.

The corpus callosum is the principal neocortical commissure which transmits lateralized information between the hemispheres. The aim of the present experiment was to study the receptive field properties of somatosensory callosal fibres in rhesus macaque monkeys. The callosum was approached under direct visual control and axonic responses were recorded using tungsten microelectrodes. All sensory submodalities which could be examined with the available instruments were found (light touch, medium and deep pressure, joint movement and light pinches). Most fibres had receptive fields concerned with the trunk, followed by the head, with only a few responding to stimulation of the extremities. The medial borders of the unilateral receptive fields situated on the trunk and the head extended to the midline. The results are interpreted in terms of the roles of the corpus callosum in midline fusion and interhemispheric transfer.

Animals↗
PubMed1987

Anomalous 2-deoxyglucose uptake and acetylcholinesterase activity in cat LGN after optic chiasm section.

Sectioning the optic chiasm in young kittens denervates layer A of the lateral geniculate nucleus (LGN) on both sides of the brain. We removed one eye of these split chiasm kittens in adulthood, rendering the ipsilateral LGN devoid of primary retinal input. Nonetheless, one day after the eye removal, consumption of 14C-2-deoxyglucose (2-DG) was much higher in layer A than in layer A1 of the LGN. The anomalous 2-DG uptake was not due to enhanced cortico-geniculate or other visual input to layer A, but instead appears related to a marked increase in acetylcholinesterase activity in this layer following the early chiasm section.

Acetylcholinesterase↗
PubMed1987

Distribution of visual callosal projection neurons in the siamese cat: an HRP study.

In this experiment we studied the distribution of callosal cells in various visual cortical areas of both common and siamese cats using the HRP method. The results showed that the most notable difference between the two strains concerned the primary visual areas. Indeed, labeling in areas 17 and 18 was significantly lower in siamese cats and only a few scattered cells were encountered at the 17/18 border. In general, the number of callosal cells forming interhemispheric connections within areas 17, 18 and the 17/18 border was dramatically reduced in the siamese. For all other visual areas (19, lateral suprasylvian subdivisions, 20 a, b and 21 a, b) the distribution was comparable for both species. A study of the laminar distribution indicated that, for common and siamese cats, medium and large pyramidal cells were mainly concentrated in layers III and IV whereas in deeper layers we found a mixture of small pyramidal and fusiform neurons.

Animals↗
PubMed1986

Stereoperception in cats following section of the corpus callosum and/or the optic chiasma.

The spatial separation of the eyes in animals with overlapping visual fields means that parts of a three dimensional object project to slightly disparate retinal points in each eye. This disparity, once interpreted by the brain, is thought to be a sufficient condition for stereoperception. In the present experiment, stereopsis based on spatial disparity cues was evaluated in cats using Julesz random-dot stereograms before and after sections of the optic chiasm, the corpus callosum or both. Normal cats were able to solve the random-dot problem. Optic chiasm transection drastically diminished this ability, callosal section had little effect and combined lesions of these two structures abolished stereoperception. These results suggest that central stereopsis based on spatial disparity is mainly mediated by binocular cortical cells receiving their input via the ipsilateral and the through-the-chiasm contralateral thalamo-cortical pathways.

Animals↗
PubMed1985

Neurophysiologic study of olivopontocerebellar atrophy with or without glutamate dehydrogenase deficiency.

By neurophysiologic investigations, we evaluated 20 patients with olivopontocerebellar atrophy (OPCA), comprising 8 with glutamate dehydrogenase (GDH) deficiency and 12 with normal GDH activity. We found sensorimotor, predominantly sensory axonal neuropathy distally in the legs, and peripheral auditory nerve dysfunction (prolonged wave I but normal interpeak latencies in brainstem auditory evoked response) in GDH-deficient patients. These findings seem distinctive enough to serve as the electrophysiologic marker for diagnosis and monitoring of treatment and progression of the disease. The pattern-reversal visual and median nerve somatosensory evoked responses did not differ among the patients and controls.

Aged↗
PubMed1984

Lack of binocular activation of cells in area 19 of the Siamese cat.

Single cells were recorded in area 19 of 8 Siamese cats. Receptive fields (RFs) were typical for this area in terms of size, directional specificity and type. However, 69 out of the 70 units found were monocularly driven through the contralateral eye. Moreover, the amount of excursion of RFs into the ipsilateral visual field was more limited than that generally demonstrated for areas 17 and 18, extending to a maximum of 5 degrees with very few cells having RFs situated completely within the ipsilateral hemifield.

Animals↗
PubMed1984

A genetic study of red cell osmotic fragility in Huntington's disease.

The erythrocyte osmotic fragility was evaluated on 19 unmedicated subjects with Huntington's disease and 42 individuals at 50% risk, 27 children at 25% risk, and a group of 60 hematologically normal control persons. Five older subjects at 50% risk for Huntington's disease as well as 6 Alzheimer's disease individuals were also evaluated for comparison. The osmotic fragility of fresh and 24-hour incubated red cells was analyzed and a fragility index calculated for each individual. The fragility index for the Huntington's disease group was statistically lower than that of the control group (P less than .001) suggesting that the Huntington's disease erythrocytes had a reduced osmotic fragility. In the 50% risk group, 45% of the subjects demonstrated decreased osmotic fragility and 55% had normal fragility. For those subjects in the 25% risk group, 22.2% had decreased fragility and 77.8% had normal fragility. Twenty-seven offspring were evaluated of the 14 persons at 50% risk for Huntington's disease with children; eight of the 14 individuals at 50% risk showed normal fragility and all 16 of their children showed fragility indices with the normal range. The remaining six persons at 50% risk for Huntington's disease had increased erythrocyte fragility and out of their 11 children, five showed normal fragility and six had decreased fragility. These data support the hypothesis of reduced erythrocyte osmotic fragility in individuals affected with and at risk for Huntington disease, and demonstrate the need of further study of the erythrocyte in this complex behavioral genetic disease.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1984

The role of the visual cortex in response properties of lateral geniculate cells in rats.

Unitary discharges of the lateral geniculate nucleus (LGN) were analyzed in anesthetized and paralyzed rats after inactivation of visual cortical areas (VC) by cryoblockade or by depositing a cotton wick soaked in KCl (3 M). The receptive fields were mapped prior to and following the interruption of the cortico-geniculate feedback. The responsiveness of the VC was controlled by monitoring evoked potentials and the EEG. In most off-center and about half on-center cells the surround excitatory responses were markedly reduced and even totally abolished. In contrast, the center excitation remained unchanged or increased suggesting a parallel decline of the inhibitory surround. This differential influence of cortical blockade on on- or off-responses failed to appear in on-off cells whose receptive field was nonconcentrically organized. It is proposed that the VC exerts a complex influence upon geniculate physiology while the spatial center-surround relationships are under the control of the VC. The results of this investigation are comparable to those obtained in rabbits and cats.

Animals↗
PubMed1984

Pathology of olivopontocerebellar atrophy with glutamate dehydrogenase deficiency.

We report the neuropathologic findings in the first patient with recognized glutamate dehydrogenase (GDH) deficiency to come to postmortem examination. He had progressive cerebellar ataxia beginning at age 21. He died at age 47 of pulmonary emboli. Postmortem examination revealed pancerebellar, olivary, and mild pontine atrophy, demyelination of the posterior columns, degeneration of anterior horn and dorsal root ganglion cells, and reduction of myelinated fibers in the sural nerve. In addition, there was neuronal storage of lipopigment diffusely throughout the CNS and the autonomic neurons, with cell distention, atrophy, and loss in selected areas.

Atrophy↗
PubMed1983

Interocular transfer in cats with early callosal transection.

The visual system is capable of reorganization following experimental interventions, provided that these are carried out before the 'critical period' early in life. Direct evidence suggests that this plasticity may also apply to the commissural system. In the present experiment, we sectioned the posterior two-thirds of the corpus callosum in kittens either before this structure attained maturity, as defined by various anatomical and physiological parameters, or after callosal maturation but before the end of the critical period for most other visual functions. As adult, further transection of the optic chiasma was carried out and these animals were then compared with adult split-brain cats for their ability to transfer monocularly learned pattern discriminations from one hemisphere to the other. Our results indicate that only the first group of animals with the earlier callosal transection demonstrated significant interhemispheric transfer. This suggests that the secondary commissural system is subject to at least some degree of functional plasticity. However, its critical period is very brief and possibly pre-dates the optimal activation of the callosal pathway.

Age Factors↗
PubMed1983

Effects on binocular activation of cells in visual cortex of the cat following the transection of the optic tract.

Cells in area 17 of the cortex are generally activated either directly through a retino-thalamic pathway or indirectly via a contralateral hemisphere-callosal pathway. The aim of the present experiment was to evaluate the effects of eliminating this second pathway on the binocular activation of cells in the primary visual cortex. The optic tract was sectioned on one side in 18 cats and unit activity was recorded in the contralateral hemisphere. This hemisphere should receive normal thalamo-cortical inputs but no visual callosal input. These animals were compared to 21 normal cats. Extracellular electrophysiological recordings were carried out in the conventional way using tungsten microelectrodes and N2O anaesthesia. Results indicated that the proportion of binocular cells found in the cortex of tract sectioned animals was lower than that found in normal animals. However, this decrease in binocularity could be essentially attributed to cells having receptive fields situated to within 4 degrees of the vertical meridian of the visual field. These results are interpreted as being congruent with the demonstrated anatomo-physiological projections of the callosal system.

Animals↗
PubMed1983

Effects of unilateral and bilateral lesions of the lateral suprasylvian area on learning and interhemispheric transfer of pattern discrimination in the cat.

The aim of the present experiment was to evaluate the hypothesis that the lateral suprasylvian area is involved in the interhemispheric transfer of visual information. This area was surgically removed in 10 cats which had previously undergone a midsagittal transection of their optic chiasmas. The animals then learned a pattern discrimination using either one or the other hemisphere and were tested for transfer using the other, untrained hemisphere. The lateral suprasylvian area in the intact hemisphere was next ablated in 6 of these cats. Each hemisphere was trained on a new pattern discrimination and tested for transfer using the other. The results obtained with the unilaterally lesioned animals indicated that: (a) learning with the lesioned hemisphere was as rapid as with the intact hemisphere; and (b) that transfer in either direction was normal although slightly retarded, but not significantly so, when the information proceeded from the intact to the lesioned hemisphere. Learning with either hemisphere of the bilaterally lesioned animals also appeared to be normal. Learning with the hemisphere which was lesioned second and transferring to the one which was ablated first was within normal range whereas transfer was generally not as immediate when the procedure was reversed. As a whole, the results, when coupled with those of others, would tend to indicate that the lateral suprasylvian area is involved in interhemispheric transfer but shares this function with other callosally connected areas of the primary visual cortex.

Animals↗
PubMed1983

Glutamate dehydrogenase deficiency in patients with olivopontocerebellar atrophy.

Deficiency of glutamate dehydrogenase appears to be associated with a chronic progressive degenerative disorder manifesting parkinsonian extrapyramidal features, ataxia, supranuclear oculomotor dysfunction, a peripheral neuropathy and, in some cases, amyotrophy. The clinical features resemble those of the Dejerine-Thomas type of olivopontocerebellar atrophy. The data suggest autosomal dominant inheritance with low penetrance. Measurement of leukocyte glutamate dehydrogenase should be routinely performed in the evaluation of newly diagnosed or atypical cases of parkinsonism.

Aged↗