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An analysis of potentially converging inputs to the rostral ventral thalamic nuclei of the cat

Experimental Brain Research volume 68, pages 260–276 (1987)Cite this article

Summary

Potentially convergent inputs to cerebellar-receiving and basal ganglia-receiving areas of the thalamus were identified using horseradish peroxidase (HRP) retrograde tracing techniques. HRP was deposited iontophoretically into the ventroanterior (VA), ventromedial (VM), and ventrolateral (VL) thalamic nuclei in the cat. The relative numbers of labeled neurons in the basal ganglia and the cerebellar nuclei were used to assess the extent to which the injection was in cerebellar-receiving or basal ganglia-receiving portions of thalamus. The rostral pole of VA showed reciprocal connections with prefrontal portions of the cerebral cortex. Only the basal ganglia and the hypothalamus provided non-thalamic input to modulate these cortico-thalamo-cortical loops. In VM, there were reciprocal connections with prefrontal, premotor, and insular areas of the cerebral cortex. The basal ganglia (especially the substantia nigra), and to a lesser extent, the posterior and ventral portions of the deep cerebellar nuclei, provided input to VM and may modulate these corticothalamo-cortical loops. The premotor cortical areas connected to VM include those associated with eye movements, and afferents from the superior colliculus, a region of documented importance in oculomotor control, also were labeled by injections into VM. The dorsolateral portion of the VA-VL complex primarily showed reciprocal connections with the medial premotor (area 6) cortex. Basal ganglia and cerebellar afferents both may modulate this cortico-thalamo-cortical loop, although they do not necessarily converge on the same thalamic neurons. The cerebellar input to dorsolateral VA-VL was from posterior and ventral portions of the cerebellar nuclei, and the major potential brainstem afferents to this region of thalamus were from the pretectum. Mid- and caudo-lateral portions of VL had reciprocal connections with primary motor cortex (area 4). The dorsal and anterior portions of the cerebellar nuclei had a dominant input to this corticothalamo-cortical loop. Potentially converging brainstem afferents to this portion of VL were from the pretectum, especially pretectal areas to which somatosensory afferents project.

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Abbreviations

AC:

central amygdaloid nucleus

AL:

lateral amygdaloid nucleus

AM:

anteromedial thalamic nucleus

AV:

anteroventral thalamic nucleus

BC:

brachium conjunctivum

BIC:

brachium of the inferior colliculus

Cd:

caudate nucleus

CL:

centrolateral thalamic nucleus

CM:

centre median nucleus

CP:

cerebral peduncle

CUN:

cuneate nucleus

DBC:

decussation of the brachium conjunctivum

DR:

dorsal raphe nuclei

EC:

external cuneate nucleus

ENTO:

entopeduncular nucleus

FN:

fastigial nucleus

FX:

fornix

GP:

globus pallidus

GR:

gracile nucleus

IC:

internal capsule

ICP:

inferior cerebellar peduncle

IP:

interpeduncular nucleus

IVN:

inferior vestibular nucleus

LD:

lateral dorsal thalamic nucleus

LGN:

lateral geniculate nucleus

LH:

lateral hypothalamus

LP:

lateral posterior thalamic complex

LRN:

lateral reticular nucleus

LVN:

lateral vestibular nucleus

MB:

mammillary body

MD:

mediodorsal thalamic nucleus

MG:

medial geniculate nucleus

ML:

medial lemniscus

MLF:

medial lengitudinal fasciculus

MT:

mammillothalamic tract

MVN:

medial vestibular nucleus

NDBB:

nucleus of the diagonal band of Broca

NIA:

anterior nucleus interpositus

NIP:

posterior nucleus interpositus

OD:

optic decussation

OT:

optic tract

PAC:

paracentral thalamic nucleus

PPN:

pedunculopontine region

PRO:

gyrus proreus

PRT:

pretectal region

PT:

pyramidal tract

PTA:

anterior pretectal region

PTM:

medial pretectal region

PTO:

olivary pretectal nucleus

PTP:

poterior pretectal region

Pul:

pulvinar nucleus

Put:

putamen

RF:

reticular formation

RN:

red nucleus

Rt:

reticular complex of the thalamus

S:

solitary tract

SCi:

superior colliculus, intermediate gray

SN:

substantia nigra

ST:

subthalamic nucleus

VA:

ventroanterior thalamic nucleus

VB:

ventrobasal complex

VL:

ventrolateral thalamic nucleus

VM:

ventromedial thalamic nucleus

III:

oculomotor nucleus

IIIn:

oculomotor nerve

5S:

spinal trigeminal nucleus

5T:

spinal trigeminal tract

VII:

facial nucleus

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Affiliations

  1. Departments of Rehabilitation Medicine, Physiology and Biophysics, and Biological Structure and Regional Primate Research Center, University of Washington, 98195, Seattle, WA, USA

    M. E. Anderson & J. L. DeVito

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  1. M. E. Anderson
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  2. J. L. DeVito
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Anderson, M.E., DeVito, J.L. An analysis of potentially converging inputs to the rostral ventral thalamic nuclei of the cat. Exp Brain Res 68, 260–276 (1987). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00248792

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00248792

Key words

  • Thalamic afferents
  • Basal ganglia
  • Cerebellar nuclei
  • Thalamo-cortico-thalamic loops