Summary
Controlled electrical stimulation of an ampullar nerve in the inner ear was used to demonstrate vestibular projections to the motor cortex of cats anaesthetized with chloralose. Macroelectrode recordings from the cortical surface in the somatomotor region, around the cruciate sulcus, show two kinds of vestibular evoked responses: the latency, shape and distribution of these potentials indicate a different origin for each type, as do also the results of experiments investigating somato-vestibular interactions. A study of the somatic and vestibular inputs to individual pericruciate neurons, and of their possible output into the pyramidal tract, revealed that 1. the vestibular afferents (reaching 40% of the population studied) are principally distributed among the somatic neurons receiving their input from several limbs, and 2. some of the cortical cells receiving vestibular afferents contribute axons to the pyramidal tract. Results are discussed with respect to the possible functional significance of such a vestibular input to the motor area for the adequate performance of movements.
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Boisacq-Schepens, N., Hanus, M. Motor cortex vestibular responses in the chloralosed cat. Exp Brain Res 14, 539–549 (1972). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00236595
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00236595