The decisive role of sensory input in the initiation and modulation of locomotion has been demonstrated repeatedly. One approach to studying this input is provided by the split treadmill paradigm. We report here a comparative analysis of the walking of decerebrated cats on a split treadmill with belts moving not only at different speeds (differing by a factor of three), but also in different directions (forward and backward). The two limbs were shown to operate reciprocally in this mode of locomotion, as did the flexor and extensor muscles of each limb. Two main stepping strategies were identified: for each step of the limb walking on the slow treadmill belt, the limb walking on the fast belt carried out either one step (the 1:1 strategy) or two steps (the 1:2 strategy); strategies could alternate. The results obtained here suggest persistence of the integration of the locomotor networks of the two limbs despite significant mismatch of their sensory inputs.
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Translated from Zhurnal Vysshei Nervnoi Deyatel’nosti imeni I. P. Pavlova, Vol. 73, No. 1, pp. 76–87, January–February, 2023.
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Lyakhovetskii, V.A., Shkorbatova, P.Y., Gorskii, O.V. et al. Stepping in Decerebrated Cats at Simultaneously Different Speeds on a Split Treadmill. Neurosci Behav Physi 53, 873–881 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11055-023-01480-y
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11055-023-01480-y