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At least 163 records · Page 9Linked to original sources
PubMed1977

Pontine reticular formation neurons: relationship of discharge to motor activity.

The discharge correlates of pontine reticular formation units were investigated in unrestrained cats. In agreement with previous investigations using immobilized preparations, we found that these cells had high rates of activity in rapid eye movement sleep, and responded in waking to somatic, auditory, and vestibular stimuli at short latencies, many having polysensory responses and exhibiting rapid "habituation." However, despite the sensory responses of these cells, most unit activity could not be explained by the presence of sensory stimuli. Intense firing occurred in association with specific movements. Units deprived of their adequate somatic, vestibular, and auditory stimuli showed undiminished discharge rates during motor activity. Discrete sensory stimuli evoked sustained unit firing only when they also evoked a motor response. We conclude that activity in pontine reticular formation neurons is more closely related to motor output than to sensory input.

Action Potentials↗
PubMed1991

Neurons in the substantia gelatinosa rolandi (lamina II) project to the caudal ventrolateral reticular formation of the medulla oblongata in the rat.

Following injections of cholera toxin subunit B in the caudal ventrolateral reticular formation, in an area between the lateral reticular nucleus and the ventrocaudal tip of the spinal trigeminal nucleus, pars caudalis, large numbers of retrogradely labelled cells occurred in lamina II, amounting to 28% and 21% of all labelled neurons in cervical and lumbar enlargements, respectively. Most lamina II cells presented dendritic arbors distributed as narrow radial sheets, resembling the central cells of Ramòn y Cajal. It is suggested that the ventrolateral bulbar reticular formation is the only significant supraspinal target of lamina II tract neurons.

Afferent Pathways↗
PubMed1984

Relative contributions of the nucleus raphe magnus and adjacent medullary reticular formation to the inhibition by stimulation in the periaqueductal gray of a spinal nociceptive reflex in the pentobarbital-anesthetized rat.

The organization in the brainstem of descending pathways of spinal inhibition was examined in the lightly pentobarbital-anesthetized rat. Thresholds for focal electrical stimulation-produced inhibition of the spinal nociceptive tail flick (TF) reflex were determined at one stimulation site in the midbrain periaqueductal gray and three sites in the rostral medulla: nucleus raphe magnus, and the adjacent medullary reticular formation contralateral and ipsilateral to the stimulating electrode in the periaqueductal gray. Lidocaine (0.5 microliter, 4%) was subsequently microinjected in the same and other medullary loci in the same coronal plane to produce a time-limited, reversible functional neural block. The functional block produced by 0.5 microliter of lidocaine microinjected in the medulla was determined to have a radius of 0.5 mm and was maximally efficacious during the first 30 min after its intramedullary microinjection. The stimulation threshold in the periaqueductal gray for inhibition of the TF reflex was not increased significantly when either the nucleus raphe magnus was fully blocked by lidocaine microinjected in three dorsoventral positions 1.0 mm apart or when the medullary reticular formation ipsilateral and contralateral were simultaneously fully blocked. Not until the nucleus raphe magnus and medullary reticular formation ipsilateral were simultaneously blocked by lidocaine was the stimulation threshold in the periaqueductal gray for inhibition of the TF reflex significantly increased. An increase in the periaqueductal gray stimulation threshold twice as great resulted when the nucleus raphe magnus and both the ipsilateral and contralateral medullary reticular formations were all simultaneously blocked by lidocaine. These results indicate that: (1) the nucleus raphe magnus is not a necessary bulbar relay in a descending antinociceptive pathway activated by stimulation in the midbrain periaqueductal gray; and (2) descending inhibitory pathways activated in the periaqueductal gray course medially as well as laterally in the rat ventral medulla.

Animals↗
PubMed1970

Place and modality analysis in caudal reticular formation.

1. Evoked potentials and unit responses were studied under chloralose anaesthesia in a restricted region of the caudal bulbar reticular formation of the cat which is known anatomically to receive a preferential spinal input.2. Responses were analysed in terms of place and sensory modality and show varying degrees of place and modality convergence, as well as preferential responses for certain loci of stimulation.3. Evidence is presented which suggests that some unit responses are generated in dendrites.4. The response properties of the whole population are compared with those obtained from other reticular regions in previous identical experimental series. It is shown that the integrated activity of the ascending reticular formation acting as a whole would enable the organism to discriminate, to a greater or lesser degree, place and modality from the convergent peripheral input to the reticular formation.

Animals↗
PubMed1975

Effects of unilateral lesion in the midbrain reticular formation on kindled amygdaloid convulsion in cats.

Daily stimulation of the amygdala in cats resulted in progressive development of electroclinical seizures culminating in a generalized convulsion (kindling). An electrolytic lesion in the midbrain reticular formation, ipsilateral to the stimulated amygdala, markedly elevated the generalized seizure-triggering threshold and reduced susceptibility to pentylentetrazol challenge. In contrast, globus pallidus lesions had no appreciable effect upon the generalized seizure-triggering threshold and appeared to enhance susceptibility to pentylentetrazol. The results support the hypotheses that (1) the midbrain reticular formation participates significantly in the kindled amygdaloid seizures and (2) the effects of lesions in the midbrain reticular formation do not depend upon the presence of forebrain bisection.

Amygdala↗
PubMed1982

Mesencephalic and bulbar reticular formation influences on somatosensory transmission through the thalamus.

The influence of the brain stem reticular formation (RF) on transfer of somatosensory information has been studied in intact cats and in cats with a chronic hemisection of the brain stem at the pretrigeminal level. An air-jet applied to the hairy skin receptive field evoked the discharge of thalamocortical relay cells in nucleus ventralis postero-lateralis, extracellularly recorded. Conditioning stimuli were brief trains of electrical pulses to mesencephalic (MRF) and bulbar (BRF) reticular formation. In intact cats both MRF and BRF induced in a small percentage of cells slight facilitation or inhibition of evoked discharge. In pretrigeminal cats MRF stimulation increased the probability of discharge in response to peripheral stimuli, whereas BRF stimulation induced a striking decrease in evoked firing in a great percentage of neurones. It is suggested that RF activation can decrease the incoming peripheral volley by means of its caudalmost part, while it is able to enhance thalamic response by way of the more rostral structures.

Afferent Pathways↗
PubMed1987

Autoradiographic study of descending pathways from the pontine reticular formation and the mesencephalic trigeminal nucleus in the rat.

Descending projections were studied in autoradiographically prepared material after injections of tritiated leucine in the pontine tegmentum of rats. Injections involving the medial pontine reticular formation resulted not only in labeling commissural fibers, the medial reticulospinal tract, and the dorsal cap of the inferior olive, but also, in two cases, in labeling a cerebellar projection that originated from a region near the midline and clearly dorsal to the nucleus reticularis tegmenti pontis. The labeled fibers passed ventral in the midline to the pontine gray, then laterally through the gray and into the middle cerebellar peduncle to terminate as mossy fibers primarily in the flocculus, lobulus simplex, and Crus I of the ansiform lobule. Injections involving the mesencephalic nucleus of the trigeminal nerve (Vmes), resulted in labeling of Probst's tract, which descends in the dorsolateral reticular formation. Probst's tract gave off extensive terminal branches to the lateral medullary reticular formation and weaker projections to restricted portions of the descending trigeminal nucleus, the solitary nucleus, and the hypoglossal nucleus. In one case, fibers could be traced into the dorsal horn of the upper cervical cord.

Abducens Nerve↗
PubMed1992

[Changes in centrally released arginine vasopressin by stimulation of the medullary reticular formation].

It has been reported that after 40 minutes of stimulation of the medullary reticular formation (MORF), widespread significant increase by 1.4% to 2.8% in brain water content occurs in white matter of the injured hemisphere. Recent studies indicate that centrally released arginine vasopressin (AVP) influences water permeability of the brain in both normal and pathological conditions. The present study was carried out to clarify the effect of electrical stimulation of MORF on centrally released AVP. The cats were divided into three groups. In group A (16 cats), electrical stimulation of MORF (1msec, 5V, 50Hz) was carried out for 80 minutes in normal cats. In group B (11 cats), stimulation was started 17 hours after cold injury under the same conditions and carried out for 80 minutes. In group C (10 cats), angiotensin II was administered to elevate blood pressure to the same degree as during MORF stimulation 17 hours after cold injury. AVP concentrations in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), plasma and brain tissue of the injured and non-injured white matter were measured by radioimmunoassay. Plasma osmolality was also determined by the freezing point depression method. Normal values (mean +/- S. D.) of CSF and plasma AVP were 4.0 +/- 2.2 and 9.9 +/- 3.6 pg/ml respectively. Plasma AVP and osmolality did not show significant changes before and at the end of experiments in all groups. There were no significant changes in CSF AVP by induced hypertension for 80 minutes (Group C). Stimulation of the medullary reticular formation resulted in significant and progressive increase in CSF AVP in normal and injured brain (Group A, B).(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Animals↗
PubMed2000

Selective blockade of muscarinic receptor subtypes in the brain stem reticular formation in rats: effects on anesthetic requirements.

Muscarinic involvement in the modulation of general anesthesia was examined in the rat with a cannula implanted in the pontine reticular formation. Atropine microinjected into the reticular formation reversed the minimum alveolar concentration (MAC) reducing effect of carbachol on halothane anesthesia, but M(1) or M(3) antagonist had no effect. An M(2) antagonist reduced the MAC of halothane following saline and carbachol. The results suggest that any of the muscarinic receptor subtypes in this region do not independently mediate the cholinomimetic effect on halothane anesthesia.

Adjuvants, Anesthesia↗
PubMed1987

The fiber projections from the dentate nucleus to the reticular formation of the brain stem in the rabbit.

The projections from the dentate nucleus to the reticular formation of the brain stem in rabbit have been examined by means of the Fink-Heimer technique. The fibers arising from the dentate nucleus primarily project to the reticular formation via the contralateral and ipsilateral descending limbs of the brachium conjunctivum. The descending fibers project bilaterally to the parvocellular reticular nucleus, the ventral reticular nucleus, the gigantocellular reticular nucleus, the nucleus raphe magnus, the oral and caudal pontine reticular nuclei, and the reticulo-tegmental nucleus.

Animals↗
PubMed1977

[Structural features of the brain stem reticular formation, hippocampus and limbic region of the cortex].

The paper compares the structural reorganization of reticular formation of the brain stem with the cortical structures of the limbic system--hippocamp and limbic cortex in the mammalian comparative order (a hedgehog, a rabbit, a cat, a dog, a dolphin, a monkey, a man). In all the studied links of the limbico-reticular system the author revealed general regularity: the main trend of a structural development is expressed in the intensification of their structural heterogeneity: nuclei are divided in subnuclei, areas in subareas, layers in sublayers. In all structures these features are expressed more vividly in their phylogenetic new parts. Besides, changes of the brain caudal sections--reticular formation are relatively less expressed than the rostral sections, i.e. hippocamp and limbic cortex.

Animals↗
PubMed1963

Pontine reticular formation: relation to lateral geniculate nucleus during deep sleep.

Irregular groups of monophasic waves (seven waves per second) appear synchronously in the pontine reticular, formation and in the lateral geniculate nucleus during the deep (low-voltage, fast) phase of sleep. The geniculate potentials can be triggered by low-rate stimulation of the pontine reticular formation, but the reverse effect has never been obtained.

Geniculate Bodies↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Protection by nicotine from behavioral disruption caused by reticular formation stimulation in the rat.

Male Sprague-Dawley rats prepared with chronic electrodes in the mesencephalic reticular formation were trained to perform on a visual attention task. Short trains of electric current delivered to the reticular formation effectively blocked performance in a reversible and reproducible fashion. Subcutaneous administration of 100 mug/kg nicotine (as the base) served to attenuate the behavioral disruption caused by reticular stimulation. The suggestion that it is a nicotine-induced limbic system activation which antagonizes the behavioral disruption caused by electrically-induced reticular over-activation, is discussed.

Animals↗
PubMed1977

Excitatory responses of neurones in rat bulbar reticular formation to bulbar raphe stimulation and to iontophoretically applied 5-hydroxytryptamine, and their blockade by LSD 25.

1. The micro-iontophoretic technique has been used to study the responses of single neurones in the bulbar reticular formation to 5-hydroxytryptamine and to noradrenaline, ACh or glutamate, and to compare these with the responses to electrical stimulation in or near the bulbar raphe nuclei. 2. In the bulbar reticular formation, most neurones were excited by 5-hydroxytryptamine; forty-three of fifty-one neurones excited by 5-hydroxytryptamine were also excited by stimulation in nucleus raphe magnus, nucleus raphe pallidus or nucleus raphe obscurus. Most of these stimulation-induced excitations were of long latency: LSD reduced six of seven of these excitations tested, while 5-hydroxytryptamine excitations were blocked on all seven. 3. In contrast, stimulation of areas adjacent to the raphe nuclei excited only fifteen of forty-six neurones excited by 5-hydroxytryptamine. Most of these stimulation effects were of short latency and none of the three tested were reduced by LSD, although 5-hydroxytryptamine excitations were blocked. 4. The relationship of the long-latency excitatory effects of stimulation with the position of the stimulating electrode in the raphe nuclei indicates that these effects are probably mediated via the raphe neurones and this is supported by the correlation of the effects of raphe stimulation with the effects of 5-hydroxytryptamine applied iontophoretically and by the ability of LSD to block both effects. 5. The results provide a physiological basis for the excitatory effects of iontophoretically applied 5-hydroxytryptamine in the bulbar reticular formation.

Acetylcholine↗
PubMed1992

Similarities between the akinesia induced by carbachol microinjections into the pontine reticular formation and neuroleptic catalepsy.

We reported previously that microinjections of carbachol directly into the pontine reticular formation of rats induced intense akinesia. In the present article we report results of tests for rigidity, righting, bracing and clinging which were conducted with the purpose to characterize behaviorally this type of akinesia. After injections of 5-15 micrograms/0.5 microliter of carbachol into the pontine reticular formation the rats were cataleptic, were not rigid when equilibrium was not challenged, had strong righting reflexes and strong bracing and clinging responses. This type of akinesia is different from the catatonia induced by systemic morphine (20 mg/kg IP), but similar to the catalepsy induced by systemic injections of haloperidol (5 mg/kg IP). It is thus suggested that the cataleptic state produced by topical carbachol in the pons is related to the dopaminergic mechanisms important for the cataleptic effect of the neuroleptic drugs.

Analysis of Variance↗
PubMed1983

Observations on the connectivity of the parvicellular reticular formation with respect to a vomiting center.

The intrinsic and extrinsic connections of the parvicellular reticular formation (PCRF) that have been demonstrated by fiber degeneration studies and studied by more recently introduced horseradish peroxidase retrograde cell labeling are reviewed in an attempt to delimit the connectivity of the region in the PCRF where electrical stimulation produced emesis. Evidence is presented that certain specific functional subdivisions in PCRF such as the salivatory nuclei and the cells which give rise to the vestibular efferent projections can be delimited. An attempt is made to differentiate the sources of brain stem afferent connections with the nucleus of the tractus solitarius, the vagal nucleus and the nucleus ambiguus complex. The literature bearing on the histochemistry of the brain stem is reviewed in a search for clues to possible unique histo- or immunochemical cytological subdivisions in the parvicellular reticular formation.

Acetylcholinesterase↗