Skip to main content
NCBI home page
British Journal of Pharmacology logoLink to British Journal of Pharmacology
. 1971 Jul;42(3):328–342. doi: 10.1111/j.1476-5381.1971.tb07117.x

Blockade of the reticulospinal inhibitory pathway by anaesthetic agents

G B Frank, M Ohta
PMCID: PMC1665657  PMID: 4934743

Abstract

1. Adult cats were decerebrated at the intercollicular level. The effect of the anaesthetic agents, pentobarbitone, paraldehyde, tribromethanol, chloralose and procaine on the reticulospinal inhibitory pathway, which produced inhibition of segmental reflex potentials, was analysed.

2. The doses which blocked this inhibitory pathway did not exceed the doses required to produce surgical level anaesthesia with any of the drugs.

3. After the reticular inhibition of the reflex potentials was abolished, the reflex potentials were augmented by reticular stimulation with a higher intensity. This was thought to be due to spread of current to the excitatory pathways which were not completely depressed by the anaesthetic agent.

4. The resistance of the reticular facilitation of the reflex potentials to inhibition by these drugs after abolition of inhibition corresponded in general to the degree of excitement in intact mice produced by the same drugs.

5. These findings seem to indicate that the preferential block of the reticulospinal inhibitory pathway may be an important neural mechanism for the excitement stage of anaesthesia.

Full text

PDF
328

Selected References

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

  1. ARDUINI A., ARDUINI M. G. Effect of drugs and metabolic alterations on brain stem arousal mechanism. J Pharmacol Exp Ther. 1954 Jan;110(1):76–85. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  2. BROOKS C. M., KOIZUMI K., SIEBENS A. A. Inhibitory action of bulbar and suprabulbar reticular formation on the spinal reflex pathway. Am J Physiol. 1956 Mar;184(3):497–504. doi: 10.1152/ajplegacy.1956.184.3.497. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  3. CARPENTER D., ENGBERG I., LUNDBERG A. Presynaptic inhibition in the lumbar cord evoked from the brain stem. Experientia. 1962 Oct 15;18:450–451. doi: 10.1007/BF02175852. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  4. DAVIS H. S., COLLINS W. F., RANDT C. T., DILLON W. H. Effect of anesthetic agents on evoked central nervous system responses; gaseous agents. Anesthesiology. 1957 Jul-Aug;18(4):634–642. doi: 10.1097/00000542-195707000-00011. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  5. DAVIS H. S., QUITMEYER V. E., COLLINS W. F. The effect of halothane (fluothane) on the thalamus and midbrain reticular formation. Anaesthesia. 1961 Jan;16:32–49. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  6. De Jong R. H., Robles R., Corbin R. W. Central actions of lidocaine--synaptic transmission. Anesthesiology. 1969 Jan;30(1):19–23. doi: 10.1097/00000542-196901000-00012. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  7. De Jong R. H., Robles R., Corbin R. W., Nace R. A. Effect of inhalation anesthetics on monosynaptic and plysynpatic transmission in the spinal cord. J Pharmacol Exp Ther. 1968 Aug;162(2):326–330. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  8. FRANK G. B., SANDERS H. D. A PROPOSED COMMON MECHANISM OF ACTION FOR GENERAL AND LOCAL ANAESTHETICS IN THE CENTRAL NERVOUS SYSTEM. Br J Pharmacol Chemother. 1963 Aug;21:1–9. doi: 10.1111/j.1476-5381.1963.tb01497.x. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  9. FRENCH J. D., VERZEANO M., MAGOUN H. W. A neural basis of the anesthetic state. AMA Arch Neurol Psychiatry. 1953 Apr;69(4):519–529. doi: 10.1001/archneurpsyc.1953.02320280107010. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  10. Jankowska E., Lund S., Lundberg A., Pompeiano O. Postsynaptic inhibition in motoneurones evoked from the lower reticular formation. Experientia. 1964 Dec 15;20(12):701–702. doi: 10.1007/BF02145284. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  11. KILLAM E. K. Drug action on the brain-stem reticular formation. Pharmacol Rev. 1962 Jun;14:175–223. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  12. KING E. E. Differential action of anesthetics and interneuron depressants upon EEG arousal and recruitment responses. J Pharmacol Exp Ther. 1956 Apr;116(4):404–417. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  13. KOIZUMI K., USHIYAMA J., BROOKS C. M. A study of reticular formation action on spinal interneurons and motoneurons. Jpn J Physiol. 1959 Sep 15;9:282–303. doi: 10.2170/jjphysiol.9.282. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  14. LLINAS R. MECHANSIMS OF SUPRASPINAL ACTIONS UPON SPINAL CORD ACTIVITIES. PHARMACOLOGICAL STUDIES ON RETICULAR INHIBITION OF ALPHA EXTENSOR MOTONEURONS. J Neurophysiol. 1964 Nov;27:1127–1137. doi: 10.1152/jn.1964.27.6.1127. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  15. LLINAS R., TERZUOLO C. A. MECHANISMS OF SUPRASPINAL ACTIONS UPON SPINAL CORD ACTIVITIES. RETICULAR INHIBITORY MECHANISMS ON ALPHA-EXTENSOR MOTONEURONS. J Neurophysiol. 1964 Jul;27:579–591. doi: 10.1152/jn.1964.27.4.579. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  16. LLINAS R., TERZUOLO C. A. MECHANISMS OF SUPRASPINAL ACTIONS UPON SPINAL CORD ACTIVITIES. RETICULAR INHIBITORY MECHANISMS UPON FLEXOR MOTONEURONS. J Neurophysiol. 1965 Mar;28:413–422. doi: 10.1152/jn.1965.28.2.413. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  17. LUNDBERG A. SUPRASPINAL CONTROL OF TRANSMISSION IN REFLEX PATHS TO MOTONEURONES AND PRIMARY AFFERENTS. Prog Brain Res. 1964;12:197–221. doi: 10.1016/s0079-6123(08)60624-x. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  18. LUNDBERG A., VYKLICKY L. Inhibitory interaction between spinal relexes to primary afferents. Experientia. 1963 May 15;19:247–248. doi: 10.1007/BF02151360. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  19. PRESTON J. B., WHITLOCK D. G. Precentral facilitation and inhibition of spinal motoneurons. J Neurophysiol. 1960 Mar;23:154–170. doi: 10.1152/jn.1960.23.2.154. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  20. Shimamura M., Yamauchi T., Aoki M. Effects of chloralose anesthesia on spinal reflexes. Jpn J Physiol. 1968 Dec 15;18(6):788–797. doi: 10.2170/jjphysiol.18.788. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  21. USHIYAMA J., KOIZUMI K., BROOKS C. M. Excitability of spinal neurons and changes resulting from reticular formation stimulation. Am J Physiol. 1960 Feb;198:393–398. doi: 10.1152/ajplegacy.1960.198.2.393. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  22. Valdman A. V., Arushanyan E. B. The influence of analgetic drugs on segmental and suprasegmental inhibition. Nurs Mirror Midwives J. 1967 Apr 28;124(4):223–242. doi: 10.1016/s0079-6123(08)62896-4. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  23. WILLIS W. D., MAGNI F. THE PROPERTIES OF RETICULO-SPINAL NEURONS. Prog Brain Res. 1964;12:56–64. doi: 10.1016/s0079-6123(08)60617-2. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Articles from British Journal of Pharmacology are provided here courtesy of The British Pharmacological Society

RESOURCES