Excitation of hypoglossal motoneurons responsible for tongue protrusions is associated with palatally induced jaw-closing reflex

Neuroscience ◽  
1997 ◽  
Vol 78 (2) ◽  
pp. 603-612 ◽  
Author(s):  
S Tomioka ◽  
N Nakajo ◽  
M Takata
1995 ◽  
Vol 74 (5) ◽  
pp. 1911-1919 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. A. Parkis ◽  
D. A. Bayliss ◽  
A. J. Berger

1. We used conventional intracellular recording techniques in 400-microns-thick slices from the brain stems of juvenile rats to investigate the action of norepinephrine (NE) on subthreshold and firing properties of hypoglossal motoneurons (HMs). 2. In recordings in current-clamp mode, 50 or 100 microM NE elicited a reversible depolarization accompanied by an increase in input resistance (RN) in all HMs tested (n = 74). In recordings in single-electrode voltage-clamp mode, NE induced a reversible inward current (INE) accompanied by a reduction in input conductance. The average reversal potential for INE was -104 mV. The NE responses could be elicited in a Ca(2+)-free solution containing tetrodotoxin, indicating that they were postsynaptic. 3. The NE response could be blocked by the alpha-adrenoceptor antagonist prazosin, but not by the beta-adrenoceptor antagonist propranolol, and could be mimicked by the alpha 1-adrenoceptor agonist phenylephrine but not by the alpha 2-adrenoceptor agonist UK 14,304 or by the beta-adrenoceptor agonist isoproterenol when alpha-adrenoceptors were blocked. 4. Substitution of barium for calcium in the perfusion solution blocked the increase in RN in response to NE without completely blocking the depolarization. Replacement of sodium chloride with choline chloride in the barium-substituted perfusion solution blocked the remaining depolarization. 5. The neuropeptide thyrotropin-releasing hormone (TRH), which also depolarizes and increases the RN of HMs, occluded the response of HMs to NE. 6. NE altered HM firing properties in three ways: it always lowered the minimum amount of injected current needed to elicit repetitive firing, it increased the slope of the firing frequency versus injected current relation in 8 of 14 cells tested, and it increased the delay from the onset of the depolarizing current pulse to the first evoked spike in all cells tested. 7. We conclude that NE acts directly on alpha 1-adrenoceptors to increase the excitability of HMs. It does this by reducing a barium-sensitive resting potassium current and activating a barium-insensitive inward current carried primarily by sodium ions. A portion of the intracellular pathway for these actions is shared by TRH. In addition, there is evidence that NE alters HM firing patterns by affecting currents that are activated following depolarization.


1997 ◽  
Vol 110 (2-3) ◽  
pp. 125-137 ◽  
Author(s):  
G.D Funk ◽  
M.A Parkis ◽  
S.R Selvaratnam ◽  
C Walsh

1982 ◽  
Vol 53 (6) ◽  
pp. 1504-1511 ◽  
Author(s):  
E. N. Bruce ◽  
J. Mitra ◽  
N. S. Cherniack

We tested the hypothesis that phrenic and hypoglossal responses to progressive hypercapnia differ qualitatively because the CO2-related drive inputs to their respective motoneuron pools are different. The relative contributions of carotid sinus and central chemoreceptor inputs to hypoglossal and phrenic responses during hyperoxic hypercapnia were determined by comparing the two nerve activities during rebreathing runs done either before and after bilateral carotid sinus nerve (CSN) section, or without and with cooling of the intermediate, I(s), area on the ventral surface of the medulla. The studies were performed on chloralose-anesthetized, vagotomized, paralyzed cats. Cooling of the I(s) area impaired phrenic responsiveness to hypercapnia more than hypoglossal responsiveness, whereas CSN section had the opposite effect. Thus phrenic nerve response was more dependent on central chemoreceptor input than was the hypoglossal response, but hypoglossal response was more dependent on carotid sinus chemoreceptor input. We conclude that the phrenic and hypoglossal motoneuron pools each receive a different functional input from both the medullary and the carotid sinus chemoreceptors.


SLEEP ◽  
1996 ◽  
Vol 19 (suppl_10) ◽  
pp. 150-153 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shinichi Okabe ◽  
Leszek Kubin

1990 ◽  
Vol 69 (2) ◽  
pp. 700-709 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. W. Mifflin

To better understand the role of the arterial chemoreceptors in the regulation of upper airway patency at the level of the oropharynx, intracellular recordings were obtained from inspiratory hypoglossal motoneurons (IHMs), and the responses to selective activation of the carotid body chemoreceptors were examined. In pentobarbital-anesthetized, vagotomized, paralyzed, and artificially ventilated cats, chemoreceptor activation enhanced the inspiratory depolarization of membrane potential in 32 of 36 IHMs. This was manifested as an increase in either the amplitude (n = 13) or duration (n = 3) or an increase in both amplitude and duration (n = 16) of the inspiratory membrane potential depolarization. The amplitude and duration of the inspiratory membrane potential depolarization increased 98 +/- 15% (n = 29) and 78 +/- 13% (n = 19), respectively. Similar patterns of enhanced activity (increased duration and/or amplitude of membrane depolarization) were observed in five expiratory hypoglossal motoneurons (EHMs) after chemoreceptor activation. In 16 of the 32 IHMs, chemoreceptor activation also evoked changes in IHM membrane potential during expiration: enhanced post-inspiratory discharge (n = 6), expiratory depolarization/discharge (n = 6), and tonic depolarization/discharge, which persisted for several respiratory cycles (n = 4). The arterial chemoreceptors provide a powerful excitatory input to IHMs during both inspiration and expiration. This excitatory drive to IHMs and EHMs will aid in the maintenance of upper airway patency throughout the respiratory cycle during increases in end-tidal CO2.


1993 ◽  
Vol 69 (6) ◽  
pp. 2150-2163 ◽  
Author(s):  
F. Viana ◽  
D. A. Bayliss ◽  
A. J. Berger

1. The role of multiple potassium conductances in action potential repolarization and repetitive firing behavior of hypoglossal motoneurons was investigated using intracellular recording techniques in a brain stem slice preparation of the neonatal rat (0-15 days old). 2. The action potential was followed by two distinct afterhyperpolarizations (AHPs). The early one was of short duration and is termed the fAHP; the later AHP was of longer duration and is termed the mAHP. The amplitudes of both AHPs were enhanced by membrane potential depolarization (further from EK). In addition, their amplitudes were reduced by high extracellular K+ concentration, suggesting that activation of potassium conductances underlies both phases of the AHP. 3. Prolongation of the action potential and blockade of the fAHP were observed after application of 1) tetraethylammonium (TEA) (1-10 mM) and 2) 4-aminopyridine (4-AP) (0.1-0.5 mM). Calcium channel blockers had little or no effect on the fAHP or action potential duration. 4. The size of the mAHP was diminished by 1) manganese, 2) lowering external Ca2+, 3) apamin, and 4) intracellular injection of ethylene glycol-bis(beta-aminoethyl ether)-N,N,N',N'-tetraacetic acid (EGTA) suggesting that influx of calcium activates the potassium conductance that underlies the mAHP. 5. The mAHP was unaffected by nifedipine (20 microM), but was strongly reduced by focal application of omega-conotoxin GVIA, suggesting that N-type calcium channels represent the major calcium influx pathway for activation of the calcium-dependent K+ conductance underlying the mAHP. 6. Repetitive firing properties were investigated by injecting long-duration depolarizing current pulses. Steady-state firing rose linearly with injected current amplitude. The slope of the firing frequency-current (f-I) relationship averaged approximately 30 Hz/nA in control conditions. Blockade of the conductance underlying the mAHP caused a marked increase in the minimal repetitive firing frequency and in the slope of the f-I plot, indicating a prominent role for the conductance underlying the mAHP in controlling repetitive firing behavior. 7. We conclude that action potential repolarization and AHPs are due to activation of pharmacologically distinct potassium conductances. Whereas repolarization of the action potential and the fAHP involves primarily a voltage-dependent, calcium-independent potassium conductance that is TEA- and 4-AP-sensitive, the mAHP requires the influx of extracellular calcium and is apamin sensitive. Activation of the calcium-activated potassium conductance greatly influences the normal repetitive firing of neonatal hypoglossal motoneurons.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document