title: Multiple firing of motoneurones is produced by cortical stimulation but not by direct activation of descending motor tracts.
abstract: In the present report we have tested whether stimulation of the motor descending tracts at the brain-stem level could set up repetitive motor unit discharges in a similar manner to that described for motor cortical stimulation. We have seen that a large descending motor volley, evoked by brain-stem stimulation, cannot produce repetitive firing of motor units. Repetitive motoneurone firing is therefore produced by multiple excitatory volleys set up by single cortical shocks.
authors.affiliation: Dipartimento di Scienze Neurologiche, Università di Roma La Sapienza, Italy.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Berardelli
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Inghilleri
authors.forename: J C
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Rothwell
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Cruccu
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Manfredi
mesh_terms: D001933:Brain Stem / Q000502:physiology; D006801:Humans; D008280:Magnetics; D009044:Motor Cortex / Q000502:physiology*; D009046:Motor Neurons / Q000502:physiology*; D009434:Neural Pathways / Q000502:physiology*