Membrane electrical properties and prediction of motor-unit type of medial gastrocnemius motoneurons in the cat

1985 ◽  
Vol 53 (5) ◽  
pp. 1323-1344 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. E. Zengel ◽  
S. A. Reid ◽  
G. W. Sypert ◽  
J. B. Munson
Keyword(s):  
Motor Unit ◽  
Time Constant ◽  
Decay Time ◽  
Motor Units ◽  
Input Resistance ◽  
Medial Gastrocnemius ◽  
Voltage Response ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Membrane Time Constant ◽  
Fast Twitch

Membrane electrical properties [time constant, action potential afterhyperpolarization (AHP), rheobase, input resistance, and axonal conduction velocity] were measured in motoneurons of cat medial gastrocnemius (MG) motor units. Motor units were classified on the basis of their mechanical responses as fast twitch, fast fatiguing (FF); fast twitch with intermediate fatigue resistance (FI); fast twitch, fatigue resistant (FR); or slow twitch, fatigue resistant (S; 11, 22). Motoneuron membrane time constant, estimated from the voltage response at the onset or termination of long (50-100 ms) current pulses and corrected for voltage-response nonlinearities (32), was found to differ significantly among the major motor-unit types, increasing in the order FF less than FR less than S. Afterhyperpolarization magnitude, half-decay time, and duration were all significantly greater for the fast (FF + FI + FR) versus the slow (S) motor units. The AHP half-decay time was correlated with muscle unit twitch time over the entire motoneuron population and within the type S motor-unit population. There was no significant correlation between twitch time and AHP half-decay time among the types FF and FR motor-unit populations. In agreement with previous studies, we found a significant difference in both rheobase and input resistance among the major motor-unit types, with rheobase increasing in the order S less than FR less than FF and input resistance decreasing in that order (S greater than FR greater than FF). The differences in input resistance were present both before and after correcting for voltage-response nonlinearities (32). Also in agreement with previous studies, the mean axonal conduction velocity was significantly faster among the fast (FF + FI + and FR) compared with the slow (S) motor units. These data were used to examine the properties alone to determine motor-unit type, which has traditionally been defined on the basis of the muscle unit's mechanical properties (11, 22). We used a discriminant analysis program to classify 73 mechanically typed motor units for which we had measures of rheobase, input resistance, membrane time constant, and AHP half-decay time. This model was able to properly classify 71 of the 73 motor units of this data set, indicating that the motor units of this data set could be grouped into three categories representing the three major motor-unit types (FF, FR, and S) on the basis of their rheobase, input resistance, membrane time constant, and AHP half-decay time.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)

Motor-unit properties following cross-reinnervation of cat lateral gastrocnemius and soleus muscles with medial gastrocnemius nerve. II. Influence of muscle on motoneurons

1987 ◽  
Vol 57 (4) ◽  
pp. 1227-1245 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. C. Foehring ◽  
G. W. Sypert ◽  
J. B. Munson
Keyword(s):  
Electrical Properties ◽  
Motor Unit ◽  
Conduction Velocity ◽  
Decay Time ◽  
Motor Units ◽  
Input Resistance ◽  
Medial Gastrocnemius ◽  
Lateral Gastrocnemius ◽  
Mean Values ◽  
Axonal Conduction

We tested whether the muscle innervated may influence the expression of motoneuron electrical properties. Properties of individual motor units were examined following cross-reinnervation (X-reinnervation) of cat lateral gastrocnemius (LG) and soleus muscles by the medial gastrocnemius (MG) nerve. We examined animals at two postoperative times: 9-10 wk (medX) and 9-11 mo (longX). For comparison, normal LG and soleus motoneuron properties were also studied. Motor units were classified on the basis of their contractile responses as fast contracting fatigable, fast intermediate fast contracting fatigue resistant, and slow types FF, FI, FR, or S, respectively) (9, 21). Motoneuron electrical properties (rheobase, input resistance, axonal conduction velocity, afterhyperpolarization) were measured. After 9-11 mo, MG motoneurons that innervated LG muscle showed recovery of electrical properties similar to self-regenerated MG motoneurons. The relationships between motoneuron electrical properties were largely similar to self-regenerated MG. For MG motoneurons that innervated LG, motoneuron type (65) predicted motor-unit type in 74% of cases. LongX-soleus motoneurons differed from longX-LG motoneurons or self-regenerated MG motoneurons in mean values for motoneuron electrical properties. The differences in overall means reflected the predominance of type S motor units. The relationships between motoneuron electrical properties were also different than in self-regenerated MG motoneurons. In all cases, the alterations were in the direction of properties of type S units, and the relationship between normal soleus motoneurons and their muscle units. Within motor-unit types, the mean values were typical for that type in self-regenerated MG. Motoneuron type (65) was a fairly strong predictor of motor-unit type in longX soleus. MG motoneurons that innervated soleus displayed altered values for axonal conduction velocity, rheobase, and input resistance, which could indicate incomplete recovery from the axotomized state. However, although mean afterhyperpolarization (AHP) half-decay time was unaltered by axotomy (25), this parameter was significantly lengthened in MG motoneurons that innervated soleus muscle. There were, however, individual motoneuron-muscle-unit mismatches, which suggested that longer mean AHP half-decay time may also be due to incomplete recovery of a subpopulation of motoneurons. Those MG motoneurons able to specify soleus muscle-fiber type exhibited motoneuron electrical properties typical of that same motoneuron type in self-regenerated MG.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)

Properties of self-reinnervated motor units of medial gastrocnemius of cat. II. Axotomized motoneurons and time course of recovery

1986 ◽  
Vol 55 (5) ◽  
pp. 947-965 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. C. Foehring ◽  
G. W. Sypert ◽  
J. B. Munson
Keyword(s):  
Electrical Properties ◽  
Motor Unit ◽  
Fatigue Resistance ◽  
Time Course ◽  
Muscle Fibers ◽  
Motor Units ◽  
Input Resistance ◽  
Medial Gastrocnemius ◽  
Muscle Properties ◽  
Fast Twitch

This study tested the hypothesis that functional connection to muscle is necessary for expression of normal motoneuron electrical properties. Also examined was the time course of self-reinnervation. Properties of individual medial gastrocnemius (MG) motor units were examined following section and reanastomosis of the MG nerve. Stages examined were 3-5 wk (prior to reinnervation, no-re), 5-6 wk (low-re), 9-10 wk (med-re), and 9 mo (long-re, preceding paper) after nerve section. Motor units were classified on the basis of their mechanical response as type fast twitch, fast fatiguing (FF), fast twitch with intermediate fatigue resistance (FI), fast twitch, fatigue resistant (FR), or slow twitch, fatigue resistant (S) (11, 24). Motoneuron electrical properties were measured. Muscle fibers were classified using histochemical methods as type fast glycolytic (FG), fast oxidative glycolytic (FOG), or slow oxidative (SO) (60). Prior to functional reinnervation, MG motoneurons exhibited increased input resistance, decreased rheobase, decreased rheobase/input resistance, and decreased axonal conduction velocity. There was no change in mean afterhyperpolarization (AHP) half-decay time. Normal relationships between motoneuron electrical properties were lost. These data are consistent with dedifferentiation of motoneuron properties following axotomy (35, 47). At 5-6 wk after reanastomosis, motor-unit tensions were small, and motoneuron membrane electrical properties were unchanged from the no-re stage. There were no differences in motoneuron electrical properties between cells that elicited muscle contraction and those that did not. Motor-unit types were first recognizable at the med-re stage. The proportions of fast and slow motor units were similar to normal MG. Within the fast units, there were fewer type-FF units and more type-FI and type-FR units than normal, reflecting a general increase in fatigue resistance at this stage. Neither motoneuron membrane electrical properties nor muscle contractile properties had reached normal values, although both were changed in that direction from the low-re stage. Normal relationships between muscle properties, between motoneuron properties, and between motoneuron and muscle properties were re-established. The correspondence between motor-unit type and motoneuron type was similar to normal or 9 mo reinnervated MG. Muscle-unit tetanic tensions became larger with time after reinnervation. Most of the increase in muscle tension beyond the med-re stage could be accounted for by increase in muscle fiber area. There was an increased proportion of SO muscle fibers observed in the med-re muscles, as at the long-re stage.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)

Presynaptic inhibition, EPSP amplitude, and motor-unit type in triceps surae motoneurons in the cat

1983 ◽  
Vol 49 (4) ◽  
pp. 922-931 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. E. Zengel ◽  
S. A. Reid ◽  
G. W. Sypert ◽  
J. B. Munson
Keyword(s):  
Motor Unit ◽  
Presynaptic Inhibition ◽  
Motor Units ◽  
Input Resistance ◽  
Triceps Surae ◽  
Medial Gastrocnemius ◽  
Absolute Amount ◽  
Epsp Amplitude ◽  
Unit Type ◽  
Fast Twitch

1. Composite group Ia excitatory postsynaptic potentials (EPSPs) produced by heteronymous nerve stimulation were recorded from triceps surae motoneurons of barbiturate-anesthetized cats. Motoneuron rheobase, input resistance, and axonal conduction velocity were measured, and motor units were classified on the basis of the mechanical responses of their muscle units. 2. The amplitude of EPSPs recorded from 33 medial gastrocnemius (MG) motoneurons ranged from 0.6 to 4.3 mV. The mean EPSP amplitude differed among the major MG motor-unit types, increasing in the order fast twitch, fast fatiguing (FF); fast twitch, fatigue resistant (FR); slow twitch, fatigue resistant (S) (FF less than FR less than S). The amplitude of EPSPs recorded from 15 soleus motoneurons ranged from 0.3 to 3.4 mV, with a mean of 1.4 mV. 3. Presynaptic inhibition of EPSPs was produced by trains of conditioning volleys in the posterior biceps-semitendinosus (PBST) nerve. In 33 MG cells PBST conditioning stimulation reduced the amplitude of EPSPs by 11-50%, with a mean inhibition of 27%. The amplitude of EPSPs in 15 soleus motoneurons was decreased by 5-84%, with a mean inhibition of 37%. 4. When the magnitude of presynaptic inhibition was expressed as percent inhibition, there was no relation between presynaptic inhibition and either motor-unit type or the amplitude of the EPSP. However, when presynaptic inhibition was expressed as the absolute amount of inhibition in millivolts, the magnitude of inhibition was highly correlated with EPSP amplitude both across the entire triceps surae population (MG, lateral gastrocnemius, soleus) as well as within each muscle population. This correlation was also significant within the MG FF and FR motor-unit populations. 5. We conclude that EPSP amplitude and not motor-unit type is the major determinant of the magnitude of presynaptic inhibition. However, because of the effect of motor-unit type on EPSP amplitude, the net effect is that presynaptic inhibition increases in the order FF less than FR less than S.

Activation of type-identified motor units during centrally evoked contractions in the cat medial gastrocnemius muscle. II. Motoneuron firing-rate modulation

1996 ◽  
Vol 75 (1) ◽  
pp. 38-50 ◽  
Author(s):  
K. E. Tansey ◽  
B. R. Botterman
Keyword(s):  
Firing Rate ◽  
Motor Unit ◽  
Muscle Force ◽  
Motor Units ◽  
Medial Gastrocnemius ◽  
Firing Rates ◽  
Rate Modulation ◽  
The Mean ◽  
Fast Twitch ◽  
The Relationship

1. The aim of this study was to examine the nature of motoneuron firing-rate modulation in type-identified motor units during smoothly graded contractions of the cat medial gastrocnemius (MG) muscle evoked by stimulation of the mesencephalic locomotor region (MLR). Motoneuron discharge patterns, firing rates, and the extent of firing-rate modulation in individual units were studied, as was the extent of concomitant changes in firing rates within pairs of simultaneously active units. 2. In 21 pairs of simultaneously active motor units, studied during 41 evoked contractions, the motoneurons' discharge rates and patterns were measured by processing the cells' recorded action potentials through windowing devices and storing their timing in computer memory. Once recruited, most motoneurons increased their firing rates over a limited range of increasing muscle tension and then maintained a fairly constant firing rate as muscle force continued to rise. Most motoneurons also decreased their firing rates over a slightly larger, but still limited, range of declining muscle force before they were derecruited. Although this was the most common discharge pattern recorded, several other interesting patterns were also seen. 3. The mean firing rate for slow twitch (type S) motor units (27.8 imp/s, 5,092 activations) was found to be significantly different from the mean firing rate for fast twitch (type F) motor units (48.4 imp/s, 11,272 activations; Student's t-test, P < 0.001). There was no significant difference between the mean firing rates of fast twitch, fatigue-resistant (type FR) and fast twitch, fatigable (type FF) motor units. When the relationship between motoneuron firing rate and whole-muscle force was analyzed, it was noted that, in general, smaller, lower threshold motor units began firing at lower rates and reached lower peak firing rates than did larger, higher threshold motor units. These results confirm both earlier experimental observations and predictions made by other investigators on the basis of computer simulations of the cat MG motor pool, but are in contrast to motor-unit discharge behavior recorded in some human motor-unit studies. 4. The extent of concomitant changes in firing rate within pairs of simultaneously active motor units was examined to estimate the extent of simultaneous motoneuron firing-rate modulation across the motoneuron pool. A smoothed (5 point sliding average) version of the two motoneurons' instantaneous firing rates was plotted against each other, and the slope and statistical significance of the relationship was determined. In 16 motor-unit pairs, the slope of the motoneurons' firing-rate relationship was significantly distinct from 0. Parallel firing-rate modulation (< 10-fold difference in firing rate change reflected by a slope of > 0.1) was noted only in pairs containing motor units of like physiological type and then only if they were of similar recruitment threshold. 5. Other investigators have demonstrated that changes in a motoneuron's "steady-state" firing rate predictably reflect changes in the amount of effective synaptic current that cell is receiving. The finding in the present study of limited parallel firing-rate modulation between simultaneously active motoneurons would suggest that changes in the synaptic drive to the various motoneurons of the pool is unevenly distributed. This finding, in addition to the findings of orderly motor-unit recruitment and the relationship between motor-unit recruitment threshold and motoneuron firing rate, cannot be adequately accommodated for by the existing models of the synaptic organization in motoneuron pools. Therefore a new model of the synaptic organization within the motoneuron pool has been proposed.

Properties of self-reinnervated motor units of medial gastrocnemius of cat. I. Long-term reinnervation

1986 ◽  
Vol 55 (5) ◽  
pp. 931-946 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. C. Foehring ◽  
G. W. Sypert ◽  
J. B. Munson
Keyword(s):  
Electrical Properties ◽  
Muscle Contraction ◽  
Motor Unit ◽  
Fatigue Resistance ◽  
Muscle Fibers ◽  
Motor Units ◽  
Contractile Properties ◽  
Medial Gastrocnemius ◽  
Unit Type ◽  
Fast Twitch

This work tested whether the membrane electrical properties of cat motoneurons, the contractile properties of their muscle units, and the normal relationships among them would be restored 9 mo after section and resuture of their muscle nerve. Properties of medial gastrocnemius (MG) motor units were examined 9 mo following section and resuture of the MG nerve in adult cats. Motoneuron electrical properties and muscle-unit contractile properties were measured. Motor units were classified on the basis of their contractile properties as type fast twitch, fast fatiguing (FF), fast twitch with intermediate fatigue resistance (FI), fast twitch, fatigue resistant (FR), or slow twitch, fatigue resistant (S) (8, 20). Muscle fibers were classified as type fast glycolytic (FG), fast oxidative glycolytic (FOG), or slow oxidative (SO) on the basis of histochemical staining for myosin adenosine triphosphatase, nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide diaphorase, and alpha-glycerophosphate dehydrogenase (48). Following 9 mo self-reinnervation, the proportions of each motor-unit type were the same as in normal control animals. Motoneuron membrane electrical properties [axonal conduction velocity, afterhyperpolarization (AHP) half-decay time, rheobase, and input resistance] also returned to control levels in those motoneurons that made functional reconnection with the muscle (as determined by ability to elicit measurable tension). The relationships among motoneuron electrical properties were normal in motoneurons making functional reconnection. Approximately 10% of MG motoneurons sampled did not elicit muscle contraction. These cells' membrane electrical properties were different from those that did elicit muscle contraction. Contractile speed and fatigue resistance of reinnervated muscle units had recovered to control levels at 9 mo postoperation. Force generation did not recover fully in type-FF units. The reduced tensions were apparently due to failure of recovery of FG muscle fiber area. Following reinnervation, relationships between motoneuron electrical and muscle-unit contractile properties were similar to controls. This was reflected in a degree of correspondence between motor-unit type and motoneuron type similar to normal units (84 vs. 86%, as defined by Ref. 61). There was a significantly increased proportion of type-SO muscle fibers and a decrease in the fast muscle fibers (especially type FOG) in 9 mo reinnervated MG. Together with the unchanged proportions of motor-unit types, this led to an estimate of average innervation ratios being increased in type-S motor units and decreased in type-FR units.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)

Activation of type-identified motor units during centrally evoked contractions in the cat medial gastrocnemius muscle. I. Motor-unit recruitment

1996 ◽  
Vol 75 (1) ◽  
pp. 26-37 ◽  
Author(s):  
K. E. Tansey ◽  
B. R. Botterman
Keyword(s):  
Motor Unit ◽  
Muscle Force ◽  
Muscle Tension ◽  
Motor Units ◽  
Motor Unit Recruitment ◽  
Medial Gastrocnemius ◽  
Recruitment Order ◽  
Fast Twitch ◽  
Physiological Type ◽  
Tetanic Tension

1. The recruitment order of 64 pairs of motor units, comprising 21 type-identified units, was studied during centrally evoked muscle contractions of the cat medial gastrocnemius (MG) muscle in an unanesthetized, high decerebrate preparation. Motor units were functionally isolated within the MG nerve by intra-axonal (or intramyelin) penetration with conventional glass microelectrodes. 2. Graded stimulation of the mesencephalic locomotor region (MLR) was used to evoke smoothly graded contractions, which under favorable conditions was estimated to reach 40% of maximum tetanic tension of the MG muscle. With this method of activation, 100% of slow twitch (type S) units, 95% of fast twitch, fatigue-resistant (type FR) units, 86% of fast twitch, fatigue-intermediate (type FI) units, and 49% of fast twitch, fatigable (type FF) units studied were recruited. 3. Motoneuron size as estimated by axonal conduction velocity (CV) was correlated with muscle-unit size as estimated by maximum tetanic tension (Po). Although the correlation between these properties was significant among type S and FR units, no significant correlation was found for these properties among type FI and FF units. 4. Motor-unit recruitment was ordered by physiological type (S > F, 100% of pairs; S > FR > FI > FF, 93% of pairs). Although none of the motor-unit properties studied predicted recruitment order perfectly, motor-unit recruitment was found to proceed by increasing Po (89% of pairs), decreasing contraction time (79% of pairs), decreasing fatigue index (80% of pairs), and increasing CV (76% of pairs). These percentages were significantly different from random (i.e., 50%). Statistically, all four motor-unit properties were equivalent in predicting recruitment order. These results are similar to those reported by other investigators for motor-unit recruitment order evoked from other supraspinal centers, as well as from peripheral sites. 5. When, however, motor-unit recruitment within pairs of motor units containing two fast-twitch (type F) units was examined, Po was a significantly better predictor of recruitment order than CV (85% vs. 52% of pairs). One explanation for this observation is that the correlation between Po and CV is high among type S, type FR units, and possibly among the lower-tension type FF units, but not among the remaining higher-tension type FF units. 6. The reproducibility of recruitment order in multiple contractions was investigated in 16 motor-unit pairs. Recruitment order was found to be variable in only three motor-unit pairs, all of which contained units of similar physiological type and recruitment threshold. 7. Analysis of recruitment order by pair-wise testing confirms the general conclusion reached in human studies that the muscle force level at recruitment for a motor unit is highly correlated with its strength. As an additional confirmation, the whole-muscle force level at recruitment for 41 units was measured in a series of contractions in which the rate of rise of muscle tension was limited to rates < 1,000 g/s. For these contractions, a significant correlation was found between muscle tension at recruitment and motor-unit Po.

Effects of chronic spinalization on ankle extensor motoneurons. III. Composite Ia EPSPs in motoneurons separated into motor unit types

1994 ◽  
Vol 71 (4) ◽  
pp. 1480-1490 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. Hochman ◽  
D. A. McCrea
Keyword(s):  
Electrical Properties ◽  
Motor Unit ◽  
Rise Time ◽  
Motor Units ◽  
Input Resistance ◽  
Half Width ◽  
Triceps Surae ◽  
Medial Gastrocnemius ◽  
Mean Values ◽  
The Difference

1. In this paper we continue an examination of changes in composite Ia excitatory postsynaptic potentials (EPSPs) in ankle extensor motoneurons after 6-wk (L1-L2) spinal cordotomy. The ratio of rheobase to input resistance was used to divide motoneurons into three groups approximating fast-fatigable (FF), fast fatigue-resistant (FR), and slow (S) motor units in barbiturate-anesthetized cats. Homonymous monosynaptic Ia EPSPs evoked by low-strength [1.2 times threshold (T)] electrical stimulation and heteronymous EPSPs evoked by 2T stimulation were compared between groups of motoneurons in unlesioned and chronic spinal preparations. 2. The distribution of motor unit types of triceps surae and plantaris (PL) motoneurons according to the present classification scheme agrees well with that obtained elsewhere using mechanical typing. Chronic spinalization resulted in an increased proportion of type FF motoneurons in PL and type FR motoneurons in lateral gastrocnemius (LG) motoneurons. There was a numeric but insignificant increase in the proportion of fast medial gastrocnemius motor units. 3. Membrane time constant (tau m) and estimated total cell capacitance were significantly reduced in FF and S motoneurons in chronic spinal preparations. FF motoneurons from chronic spinal animals also had a reduced afterhyperpolarization duration. Mean values of membrane electrical properties in FR motoneurons were unaltered after spinalization. 4. Homonymous Ia EPSP changes after chronic spinalization occurred preferentially in type FR and S motor units. Amplitudes increased 69% in type FR and 38% type S motor units but were unchanged in type FF units. Furthermore, the amplitudes of heteronymous Ia EPSPs in type FF and S units in the chronic spinal preparation were almost double those in unlesioned preparations. 5. Homonymous EPSP 10-90% rise times decreased 25% in type FR motor units and 15% in type S motor units and were unchanged in type FF motor units. Homonymous EPSP half-width decreased in all three motoneuron groups. Normalization of EPSP rise time and half-width to tau m reduced the difference between EPSP shape indexes in unlesioned and chronic spinal preparations in type FF and S motoneurons but less so in type FR motoneurons. Normalized EPSP shape indexes in some type FR units were shorter after chronic spinalization than any in unlesioned preparations. 6. The increased amplitude and decreased rise time of Ia EPSPs in type FR motoneurons after spinalization occurred without changes in the electrical properties of type FR motor units.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)

Synaptic and mechanical coupling between type-identified motor units and individual spindle afferents of medial gastrocnemius muscle of the cat

1984 ◽  
Vol 51 (6) ◽  
pp. 1268-1283 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. B. Munson ◽  
J. W. Fleshman ◽  
J. E. Zengel ◽  
G. W. Sypert
Keyword(s):  
Motor Unit ◽  
Muscle Spindle ◽  
Discharge Rate ◽  
Motor Units ◽  
Medial Gastrocnemius ◽  
Tetanic Contraction ◽  
Primary Afferent ◽  
Single Motor Unit ◽  
Mechanical Coupling ◽  
Fast Twitch

Experiments were performed to test the possibility that motor unit-muscle spindle pairs that are coupled especially strongly mechanically will also be coupled especially strongly synaptically ("weighted ensemble input": Ref. 4). Synaptic and mechanical coupling between one or two individual muscle spindle afferents and individual motor units of the medial gastrocnemius (MG) muscle were measured in barbiturate-anesthetized cats. Synaptic coupling was assessed by measuring the amplitude of single-fiber monosynaptic excitatory postsynaptic potentials (EPSPs) generated in motoneurons by individual spindle afferents. Mechanical coupling was assessed by measuring the alteration in discharge rate of these spindle afferents caused by tetanic activation of the same motor units. Afferents were classified as primary or secondary on the basis of conduction velocity and response to muscle stretch and contraction. Motor units were classified as slow twitch (S); fast twitch, fatigue resistant (FR); fast twitch, intermediate fatigue resistance (FI); and fast twitch, fatigue sensitive (FF) on the basis of twitch contraction time and resistance to fatigue. In 85% of 138 motor unit-primary afferent interactions tested, tetanic activation of the single motor unit unloaded (i.e., decreased the discharge rate of) the primary afferent. A very weak though significant correlation was found between tetanic contraction strength and primary afferent unloading. In 66% of 155 motor unit-secondary afferent interactions tested, tetanic activation of the single motor unit unloaded the secondary afferent. Again, afferent unloading was but weakly related to tetanic contraction strength. Single-fiber EPSPs generated by primary or secondary muscle spindle afferents were recorded in type-identified motor units. EPSPs generated by primary afferents were significantly larger in oxidative (S + FR) than in glycolytic (FF) motor units. No such differences were seen for EPSPs generated by secondary afferents. The magnitude of the EPSP generated in a motoneuron by a spindle afferent was compared to the magnitude of the unloading of that afferent by tetanic activation of the corresponding motor unit. Overall, no relationship was found between these measures.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)

scholarly journals Motor unit composition has little effect on the short-range stiffness of feline medial gastrocnemius muscle

2007 ◽  
Vol 103 (3) ◽  
pp. 796-802 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lei Cui ◽  
Eric J. Perreault ◽  
Thomas G. Sandercock
Keyword(s):  
Motor Unit ◽  
Short Range ◽  
Gastrocnemius Muscle ◽  
Motor Units ◽  
Medial Gastrocnemius ◽  
Single Motor Units ◽  
Slow Twitch ◽  
Slow Twitch Fibers ◽  
Fast Twitch ◽  
Medial Gastrocnemius Muscle

Studies on skinned fibers and single motor units have indicated that slow-twitch fibers are stiffer than fast-twitch fibers. This suggests that skeletal muscles with different motor unit compositions may have different short-range stiffness (SRS) properties. Furthermore, the natural recruitment of slow before fast motor units may result in an SRS-force profile that is different from electrical stimulation. However, muscle architecture and the mechanical properties of surrounding tissues also contribute to the net SRS of a muscle, and it remains unclear how these structural features each contribute to the SRS of a muscle. In this study, the SRS-force characteristics of cat medial gastrocnemius muscle were measured during natural activation using the crossed-extension reflex, which activates slow before fast motor units, and during electrical activation, in which all motor units are activated synchronously. Short, rapid, isovelocity stretches were applied using a linear puller to measure SRS across the range of muscle forces. Data were collected from eight animals. Although there was a trend toward greater stiffness during natural activation, this trend was small and not statistically significant across the population of animals tested. A simple model, in which the slow-twitch fibers were assumed to be 30% stiffer than the fast-twitch fibers, was used to simulate the experimental results. Experimental and simulated results show that motor unit composition or firing rate has little effect on the SRS property of the cat MG muscle, suggesting that architectural features may be the primary determinant of SRS.

Rectification is required to extract oscillatory envelope modulation from surface electromyographic signals

2014 ◽  
Vol 112 (7) ◽  
pp. 1685-1691 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christopher J. Dakin ◽  
Brian H. Dalton ◽  
Billy L. Luu ◽  
Jean-Sébastien Blouin
Keyword(s):  
Motor Unit ◽  
Stimulus Frequency ◽  
Motor Units ◽  
Surface Emg ◽  
Medial Gastrocnemius ◽  
Single Motor Unit ◽  
Single Motor ◽  
Single Motor Units ◽  
Emg Signal ◽  
Envelope Modulation

Rectification of surface electromyographic (EMG) recordings prior to their correlation with other signals is a widely used form of preprocessing. Recently this practice has come into question, elevating the subject of EMG rectification to a topic of much debate. Proponents for rectifying suggest it accentuates the EMG spike timing information, whereas opponents indicate it is unnecessary and its nonlinear distortion of data is potentially destructive. Here we examine the necessity of rectification on the extraction of muscle responses, but for the first time using a known oscillatory input to the muscle in the form of electrical vestibular stimulation. Participants were exposed to sinusoidal vestibular stimuli while surface and intramuscular EMG were recorded from the left medial gastrocnemius. We compared the unrectified and rectified surface EMG to single motor units to determine which method best identified stimulus-EMG coherence and phase at the single-motor unit level. Surface EMG modulation at the stimulus frequency was obvious in the unrectified surface EMG. However, this modulation was not identified by the fast Fourier transform, and therefore stimulus coherence with the unrectified EMG signal failed to capture this covariance. Both the rectified surface EMG and single motor units displayed significant coherence over the entire stimulus bandwidth (1–20 Hz). Furthermore, the stimulus-phase relationship for the rectified EMG and motor units shared a moderate correlation ( r = 0.56). These data indicate that rectification of surface EMG is a necessary step to extract EMG envelope modulation due to motor unit entrainment to a known stimulus.

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