The effect of sectioning the trigeminal sensory root on the periodontally-induced jaw-opening reflex.
The experiment was designed to determine the pathway taken to the brain stem by periodontal afferents responsible for the digastric jaw-opening reflex induced by tooth-tapping. Cutting the trigeminal sensory roots of anesthetized decerebrate cats eliminated the ipsilateral periodontally-induced reflex, although the stretch reflexes of the jaw-closing muscles were undiminished. These results suggest that periodontal afferents causing the jaw-opening reflex reach the brainstem through the Vth sensory root, and confirm that muscle spindle afferents travel through the Vth motor root.
D000818:Animals; D002415:Cats; D003655:Decerebrate State; D004576:Electromyography; D008334:Mandible / Q000502:physiology*; D008410:Masticatory Muscles / Q000294:innervation; D009046:Motor Neurons / Q000502:physiology; D009475:Neurons, Afferent / Q000502:physiology*; D010474:Percussion; D010519:Periodontium / Q000294:innervation* / Q000502:physiology; D011311:Pressoreceptors / Q000502:physiology; D012018:Reflex / Q000502:physiology*; D012026:Reflex, Stretch; D014278:Trigeminal Nuclei / Q000033:anatomy & histology / Q000502:physiology* / Q000601:surgery