title: Kinematic features of passive forelimb movements and rat cuneate neuron discharges.
abstract: We examined the role of main and external cuneate nuclei neurons in processing sensory information during forelimb passive movement. We recorded activity of neurons using circular and figure-eight trajectories, at different speeds, in anaesthetized rats. A multivariate regression analysis was performed to correlate neural discharge to movement direction and speed, the two components of the velocity vector. We found that the activity of the majority of cuneate neurons related to passive movement velocity and that the directional component of the velocity vector accounted for a larger fraction of the variability in the firing rate than the scalar component (speed). These results indicate that cuneate cells can process whole limb afferent information to elaborate a representation of the movement velocity vector.
authors.affiliation: Department of Physiological Sciences, University of Catania, viale Andrea Doria 6, 95125 Catania.
authors.forename: Angelo
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Garifoli
authors.forename: Cinzia
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Caserta
authors.forename: Gianfranco
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Bosco
authors.forename: Salvatore Andrea
authors.initials: SA
authors.lastname: Lombardo
authors.forename: Antonino
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Casabona
authors.forename: Vincenzo
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Perciavalle
mesh_terms: D000465:Algorithms; D000818:Animals; D001696:Biomechanical Phenomena; D004594:Electrophysiology; D005110:Extracellular Space / Q000502:physiology; D005552:Forelimb / Q000294:innervation* / Q000502:physiology*; D008297:Male; D008526:Medulla Oblongata / Q000166:cytology / Q000502:physiology*; D009068:Movement / Q000502:physiology*; D009474:Neurons / Q000502:physiology*; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D013238:Stereotaxic Techniques