Use of formamide increases the number of detectable inputs to polyneuronally innervated mammalian skeletal muscle.
We evaluated the extent of polyneuronal innervation in neonatal rat lateral gastrocnemius muscle with intracellular recording techniques using both formamide and d-tubocurarine as paralytic agents. We detected more polyneuronal innervation during the first postnatal week using formamide than d-tubocurarine. Both the average number of inputs per muscle cell and the percentage of polyinnervated cells were greater when formamide, rather than d-tubocurarine, was used to diminish muscle contraction. The difference in the extent of polyneuronal innervation detected using the two methods declines during the first postnatal week and the number of inputs observed with formamide during the second postnatal week does not differ from that seen with d-tubocurarine.
Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA 30322.
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D000200:Action Potentials / Q000187:drug effects; D000818:Animals; D000831:Animals, Newborn; D004594:Electrophysiology / Q000379:methods*; D005559:Formamides / Q000494:pharmacology*; D009119:Muscle Contraction / Q000187:drug effects*; D024510:Muscle Development; D009132:Muscles / Q000294:innervation* / Q000502:physiology; D051381:Rats; D011916:Rats, Inbred F344; D014403:Tubocurarine / Q000494:pharmacology
D005559:Formamides; C031066:formamide; D014403:Tubocurarine