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. Author manuscript; available in PMC: 2011 Dec 1.
Published in final edited form as: Alcohol Clin Exp Res. 2010 Sep 22;34(12):2137–2146. doi: 10.1111/j.1530-0277.2010.01310.x

Figure 1. Modulation of VTA GABA neuron firing rate by HT7 vs. tail electrical stimulation.

Figure 1

(A) This ratemeter record shows a representative VTA GABA neuron with a baseline firing rate of approximately 50 Hz. HT7 electrical (2 Hz at threshold current for muscle twitch) stimulation produced an initial (EARLY) enhancement of VTA GABA neuron firing rate followed by a more prolonged (LATE) inhibition, with subsequent recovery in 5 min. (B) This ratemeter record shows a ratemeter record from the same neuron during tail stimulation. Tail electrical stimulation produces only an EARLY increase in firing rate. (C) Summary of HT7 and tail stimulation on VTA GABA neuron firing rate. HT7 stimulation produced a significant EARLY excitation (n = 24) followed by a significant LATE inhibition of VTA GABA neuron firing rate (n = 18). Tail stimulation produced only a significant EARLY excitation (n = 14). There was a significant difference between HT7 and tail LATE effects on VTA GABA neuron firing rate. Asterisks * represent p < 0.05 compared to baseline and # represents p = 7.2E-06 between HT7 vs. tail LATE responses.