Nature of rhythmic discharges in ventral spinal roots

Abstract

After recording rhythmic discharges in the ventral spinal roots Perret and co-workers postulated the existence of a special “locomotor pacemaker”. The present writers showed that the “locomotor discharges” discovered by Perret and co-workers increase during asphyxia and disappear during apnea. Rhythmic discharges in the ventral roots thus depend on the irradiation of excitation from the respiratory center and they cannot be evidence of the existence of a special locomotor pacemaker.