title: Activity of respiratory neurons in the rostral medulla during vocalization, swallowing, and coughing in guinea pigs.
abstract: To examine the relationship between the neuronal networks underlying respiration and non-respiratory behaviors such as vocalization and airway defensive reflexes, we compared the activity of respiratory neurons in the ventrolateral medulla during breathing with that during non-respiratory behaviors including vocalization, swallowing, and coughing in guinea pigs. During fictive vocalization the activity of augmenting expiratory neurons ceased, whereas the other types of expiratory neurons did not show a consistent tendency of increasing or decreasing activity. All inspiratory neurons discharged in synchrony with the phrenic nerve activity. Most of the phase-spanning neurons were activated throughout the vocal phase. During fictive swallowing, many expiratory and inspiratory neurons were silent, whereas many phase-spanning neurons were activated. During fictive coughing, many expiratory neurons were activated during the expiratory phase of coughing. Most inspiratory neurons discharged in parallel with the phrenic nerve activity during coughing. Many phase-spanning neurons were activated during the expiratory phase of coughing. These findings indicate that the medullary respiratory neurons help shape respiratory muscle nerve activity not only during breathing but also during these non-respiratory behaviors, and thus suggest that at least some of the respiratory neurons are shared among the neuronal circuits underlying the generation of breathing and non-respiratory behaviors.
authors.affiliation: Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Kyoto Prefectural University of Medicine, Kyoto 602-8566, Japan. Electronic address: yoichiro@koto.kpu-m.ac.jp.
authors.forename: Yoichiro
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Sugiyama
authors.affiliation: Hikifune Otolaryngology Clinic, Sumida, Tokyo 131-0046, Japan.
authors.forename: Keisuke
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Shiba
authors.affiliation: Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Kyoto Prefectural University of Medicine, Kyoto 602-8566, Japan.
authors.forename: Shigeyuki
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Mukudai
authors.affiliation: Department of Otolaryngology, Graduate School of Medicine, Kyushu University, Fukuoka 812-8582, Japan.
authors.forename: Toshiro
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Umezaki
authors.affiliation: Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Kyoto Prefectural University of Medicine, Kyoto 602-8566, Japan.
authors.forename: Yasuo
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Hisa
mesh_terms: D000200:Action Potentials / Q000502:physiology; D000818:Animals; D001931:Brain Mapping; D003371:Cough / Q000503:physiopathology*; D003679:Deglutition / Q000502:physiology*; D004558:Electric Stimulation; D006168:Guinea Pigs; D008297:Male; D008526:Medulla Oblongata / Q000166:cytology*; D009434:Neural Pathways / Q000502:physiology; D009474:Neurons / Q000502:physiology*; D014828:Vocalization, Animal / Q000502:physiology*
keywords: Coughing; Guinea pigs; Respiration; Swallowing; Vocalization