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Distribution of Fos-like immunoreactivity in the caudal medullary reticular formation following noxious facial stimulation in the rat

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Abstract

To investigate the topographic organization of nociceptive neurons in the caudal medullary reticular formation, the distribution of cells that exhibit c-fos expression was examined following a unilateral noxious facial stimulus: subcutaneous injection of formalin into the vibrissal pad of awake rats. Labelling for Fos-like immunoreactivity was present in a somatotopic distribution in a region of the lateral reticular formation adjacent to trigeminal nucleus caudalis, which corresponds approximately to lamina V of the medullary dorsal horn. Labelling in adjacent regions of the reticular formation showed no somatotopy but was predominantly ipsilateral. Contralateral labelling was concentrated ventrolaterally around the lateral reticular nucleus and dorsally near the nucleus of the solitary tract.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Anesthesiology Department, Saga Medical School, Saga, Japan

    Yoko Mineta

  2. Department of Neurology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA

    Elon Eisenberg & Andrew M. Strassman

  3. Department of Anesthesia, Beth Israel Hospital, Boston, MA, USA

    Andrew M. Strassman

  4. Department of Neurobiology, Harvard Medical School, 220 Longwood Ave, 02115, Boston, MA, USA

    Andrew M. Strassman

Authors
  1. Yoko Mineta
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  2. Elon Eisenberg
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  3. Andrew M. Strassman
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Mineta, Y., Eisenberg, E. & Strassman, A.M. Distribution of Fos-like immunoreactivity in the caudal medullary reticular formation following noxious facial stimulation in the rat. Exp Brain Res 107, 34–38 (1995). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00228014

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00228014

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