title: Cerebral cortical neurons with activity linked to central neurogenic spontaneous and evoked elevations in cerebral blood flow.
abstract: We recorded neurons in rat cerebral cortex with activity relating to the neurogenic elevations in regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF) coupled to stereotyped bursts of EEG activity, burst-cerebrovascular wave complexes, appearing spontaneously or evoked by electrical stimulation of rostral ventrolateral medulla (RVL) or fastigial nucleus (FN). Of 333 spontaneously active neurons only 15 (5%), in layers 5-6, consistently (P < 0.05, chi-square) increased their activity during the earliest potential of the complex, approximately 1.3 s before the rise of rCBF, and during the minutes-long elevation of rCBF elicited by 10 s of stimulation of RVL or FN. The results indicate the presence of a small population of neurons in deep cortical laminae whose activity correlates with neurogenic elevations of rCBF. These neurons may function to transduce afferent neuronal signals into vasodilation.
authors: Department of Neurology and Neuroscience, Cornell University Medical College, New York, NY 10021, USA. egolano@mail.med.cornell.edu
authors: E V
authors: EV
authors: Golanov
authors: D J
authors: DJ
authors: Reis
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002452:Cell Count; D002540:Cerebral Cortex / Q000502:physiology*; D002560:Cerebrovascular Circulation / Q000502:physiology*; D005071:Evoked Potentials / Q000502:physiology*; D008297:Male; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley