title: Reduction in maximal firing rate of motoneurons after 1-week immobilization of finger muscle in human subjects.
abstract: We investigated the effects of immobilization on the maximal motoneuronal firing rate recorded from the first dorsal interosseous (FDI) during voluntary isometric contraction. In five human subjects, the middle finger, index finger, and thumb were immobilized for 1 week in a fiber-glass cast, which kept FDI in a shortened position. During a maximal voluntary contraction, single muscle-fiber action potentials were recorded using a tungsten microelectrode, and mean firing rate was calculated for each action-potential train. Three recording sessions were held: before immobilization (pre), after immobilization (post), and after a 1-week recovery period (recovery). The mean firing rate of FDI motoneurons during maximal voluntary contraction was decreased immediately after the 1-week immobilization (pre: 39.0+/-3.2 Hz, number of detected spike trains (n)=353; post: 33.1+/-1.5 Hz, n=285; p<0.05), and there was a return to control after the recovery period (40.2+/-3.4 Hz, n=236). This suggests that the maximal motoneuronal firing rate achieved during maximal voluntary contraction is reduced after short-term immobilization. The functional implications and the contribution of this phenomenon to the immobilization-induced reduction in maximal voluntary force are discussed.
authors.affiliation: Department of Developmental Physiology, National Institute for Physiological Sciences, Myodaiji, Okazaki, Aichi 444 8585, Japan. kazuseki@nips.ac.jp <kazuseki@nips.ac.jp>
authors.forename: Kazuhiko
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Seki
authors.forename: Tomohiro
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Kizuka
authors.forename: Hiroshi
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Yamada
mesh_terms: D000200:Action Potentials / Q000502:physiology; D000328:Adult; D004576:Electromyography; D005385:Fingers / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D007103:Immobilization; D007537:Isometric Contraction / Q000502:physiology*; D008297:Male; D009046:Motor Neurons / Q000502:physiology*; D018485:Muscle Fibers, Skeletal / Q000502:physiology; D018482:Muscle, Skeletal / Q000502:physiology*; D020127:Recovery of Function / Q000502:physiology; D013997:Time Factors