title: Role of respiratory and non-respiratory neurones in the region of the NTS in the elaboration of the sneeze reflex in cat.
abstract: Extracellular recordings were made in the dorsal respiratory group (DRG) and adjacent reticular formation following single-shock stimulation of the anterior ethmoidal nerve (AEN) and during sneeze evoked by repetitive stimulation of the AEN in nembutal-anaesthetized, curarized and ventilated cats. These neurones were characterised according to (i) their activity during the respiratory cycle (as inspiratory augmenting or decrementing (I Aug or I Dec), expiratory augmenting or decrementing (E Aug or E Dec), silent or tonic), and (ii) their axonal projection (bulbospinal or non-bulbospinal-non-vagal (BS or NBS-NV)). Following single-shock stimulation of the AEN, most of the inspiratory neurones were transiently inhibited, whereas E Aug neurones were activated and E Dec neurones were activated and then inhibited. Silent neurones responded with a multispike or a paucispike pattern. Following repetitive stimulation of the AEN and during the resulting sneeze reflex, I Aug neurones increased their activity in parallel with the phrenic activity, I Dec neurones fired at the onset and at the end of the inspiration, E Dec and some silent neurones fired either during the compressive phase or after the expulsive phase, whereas E Aug and some silent neurones fired during the expulsive phase. We conclude that sneeze involves a reconfiguration of the central respiratory drive which uses, at least partly, the respiratory network to trigger a non-ventilatory defensive motor act.
authors.affiliation: URA CNRS 1331, Laboratoire de Neurophysiologie, Faculté de Médecine, Université de Picardie, Amiens, France.
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Wallois
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Bodineau
authors.forename: J M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Macron
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Marlot
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Duron
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002415:Cats; D004558:Electric Stimulation; D005260:Female; D008297:Male; D009474:Neurons / Q000502:physiology*; D010791:Phrenic Nerve / Q000502:physiology; D012018:Reflex / Q000502:physiology*; D012137:Respiratory System / Q000294:innervation*; D012912:Sneezing / Q000502:physiology*; D017552:Solitary Nucleus / Q000166:cytology / Q000502:physiology*; D013116:Spinal Cord / Q000166:cytology / Q000502:physiology*; D014630:Vagus Nerve / Q000502:physiology