Skip to main content
NCBI home page
The Journal of Physiology logoLink to The Journal of Physiology
. 1967 Apr;189(2):281–298. doi: 10.1113/jphysiol.1967.sp008168

The response of single units in the caudate nucleus to peripheral stimulation

E M Sedgwick, T D Williams
PMCID: PMC1396063  PMID: 5340539

Abstract

1. Extra- and intracellular recordings have been made of single units in the caudate nucleus of the cat, anaesthetized with alpha chloralose.

2. Pentobarbitone was shown to depress the spontaneous activity and responses of units in the caudate nucleus.

3. Spontaneous activity of units usually took the form of single spikes or bursts of up to four spikes occurring every 100-300 msec.

4. The response to electrical stimulation of limb nerves was a burst of 1-4 spikes after a latency of about 30 msec. Convergence from all four limbs on to single units was observed. It is shown that muscle afferents do not cause these responses.

5. Post stimulus histograms of spontaneously active units show, following stimulation of the limb nerves, recurring cycles of excitation and inhibition at a rate of 3-4 c/s and lasting for several seconds. It is suggested that each stimulus synchronizes the normally rhythmic spontaneous activity.

6. Similar responses have been obtained following stimulation by clicks and flashes of light.

7. Stimulation of the ipsilateral cerebral cortex gave excitatory and inhibitory responses similar to those described above.

8. Possible mechanisms for these responses and their significance are discussed.

Full text

PDF
281

Images in this article

289Fig. 6
on p.289

Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

  1. ALBE-FESSARD D., OSWALDO-CRUZ E., ROCHA-MIRANDA C. [Activity induced in the caudate nucleus of the cat in response to various types of afferences. I. Macrophysiological study]. Electroencephalogr Clin Neurophysiol. 1960 May;12:405–420. doi: 10.1016/0013-4694(60)90017-1. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  2. ALBE-FESSARD D., ROCHA-MIRANDA C., OSWALDO-CRUZ E. [Activity evoked in the caudate nucleus of the cat in response to various types of afferent stimulation. II. Microphysiological study]. Electroencephalogr Clin Neurophysiol. 1960 Aug;12:649–661. doi: 10.1016/0013-4694(60)90108-5. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  3. ANDERSEN P., BROOKS C. M., ECCLES J. C., SEARS T. A. THE VENTRO-BASAL NUCLEUS OF THE THALAMUS: POTENTIAL FIELDS, SYNAPTIC TRANSMISSION AND EXCITABILITY OF BOTH PRESYNAPTIC AND POST-SYNAPTIC COMPONENTS. J Physiol. 1964 Nov;174:348–369. doi: 10.1113/jphysiol.1964.sp007492. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  4. ANDERSEN P., ECCLES J. C., SEARS T. A. THE VENTRO-BASAL COMPLEX OF THE THALAMUS: TYPES OF CELLS, THEIR RESPONSES AND THEIR FUNCTIONAL ORGANIZATION. J Physiol. 1964 Nov;174:370–399. doi: 10.1113/jphysiol.1964.sp007493. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  5. ANDERSEN P., SEARS T. A. THE ROLE OF INHIBITION IN THE PHASING OF SPONTANEOUS THALAMO-CORTICAL DISCHARGE. J Physiol. 1964 Oct;173:459–480. doi: 10.1113/jphysiol.1964.sp007468. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  6. Aitkin L. M., Dunlop C. W., Webster W. R. Click-evoked response patterns of single units in the medial geniculate body of the cat. J Neurophysiol. 1966 Jan;29(1):109–123. doi: 10.1152/jn.1966.29.1.109. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  7. ENCABO H., BUSER P. INFLUENCE DES AIRES PRIMAIRES N'EOCORTICALES SUR LES R'EPONSES SENSORIELLES VISUELLES ET ACOUSTIQUES DE LA T ETE DU NOYAU CAUD'E. Electroencephalogr Clin Neurophysiol. 1964 Aug;17:144–153. doi: 10.1016/0013-4694(64)90146-4. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  8. KRAUTHAMER G., ALBE-FESSARD D. INHIBITION OF NONSPECIFIC SENSORY ACTIVITIES FOLLOWING STRIOPALLIDAL AND CAPSULAR STIMULATION. J Neurophysiol. 1965 Jan;28:100–124. doi: 10.1152/jn.1965.28.1.100. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  9. KRUGER L., ALBE-FESSARD D. Distribution of responses to somatic afferent stimuli in the diencephalon of the cat under chloralose anesthesia. Exp Neurol. 1960 Oct;2:442–467. doi: 10.1016/0014-4886(60)90027-3. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  10. Rocha-Miranda C. E. Single unit analysis of cortex-caudate connections. Electroencephalogr Clin Neurophysiol. 1965 Sep;19(3):237–247. doi: 10.1016/0013-4694(65)90203-8. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  11. Sedgwick E. M., Williams T. D. Responses of single units in the inferior olive to stimulation of the limb nerves, peripheral skin receptors, cerebellum, caudate nucleus and motor cortex. J Physiol. 1967 Apr;189(2):261–279. doi: 10.1113/jphysiol.1967.sp008167. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  12. WEBSTER K. E. THE CORTICO-STRIATAL PROJECTION IN THE CAT. J Anat. 1965 Apr;99:329–337. [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Articles from The Journal of Physiology are provided here courtesy of The Physiological Society

RESOURCES