21 N-Methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptors are of critical importance for 22 locomotion in the developing neonatal spinal cord in rats and mice. However, due to 23 profound changes in the expression of NMDA receptors in development between the 24 neonatal stages and adulthood, it is unclear whether NMDA receptors are still an 25 important component of locomotion in the adult rodent spinal cord. T...

In obstructive sleep apnea patients, upper airway muscle tone is depressed during rapid eye movement (REM) sleep parallel to the characteristic postural atonia. Previous electrophysiological, pharmacological and anatomical studies provided evidence that a withdrawal of excitation mediated by norepinephrine and serotonin as well as active inhibition may contribute to the REM sleep-related depres...

A2aR Adenosine 2a receptor AD Alzheimer’s disease ALS Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis cAMP Cyclic adenosine monophosphate CAPE Phenethyl ester of caffeic acid CCC Cancer controls CI Confidence interval CNS Central nervous system CSP Cortical silent period GABA Gamma-aminobutyric acid GFAP Glial fibrillar acidic protein GLT1 Glial glutamate transporter 1 GP General practitioner LPS Lipopolysacchar...

Serotonergic and peptidergic modulation of buccal muscle contraction at an identified neuromuscular synapse in the African giant snail Achatina fulica was examined. A pair of excitatory motoneurons of the radula protractor was identified in the buccal ganglia and these were named B10 neurons. Pharmacological experiments revealed the B10s to be cholinergic. The serotonergic cerebral neuron v-CDN...

The pudendal motor system is constituted by striated muscles of the pelvic floor and the spinal motoneurons that innervate them. It plays a role in eliminative functions of the bladder and intestine and in sexual function. Pudendal motoneurons are located in the ventral horn of the caudal lumbar spinal cord and send their axon into the pudendal nerve. In the rat, binding sites for vasopressin a...

Pharmacologically distinct calcium channels have been characterized in dissociated cutaneous sensory neurons and motoneurons of the larval lamprey spinal cord. To enable cell identification, sensory dorsal cells and motoneurons were selectively labeled with fluorescein-coupled dextran amine in the intact spinal cord in vitro before dissociation. Calcium channels present in sensory dorsal cells,...

Left-right coordination is essential for locomotor movements and is partly mediated by spinal commissural systems. Such coordination is also essential for reaching and manipulation in primates, but the role of spinal commissural systems here has not been studied. We investigated commissural connectivity to motoneurons innervating forelimb muscles using intracellular recordings in acutely anesth...

Gonadal androgens are critical for the development and maintenance of sexually dimorphic regions of the male nervous system, which is critical for male-specific behavior and physiological functioning. In rodents, the motoneurons of the spinal nucleus of the bulbocavernosus (SNB) provide a useful example of a neural system dependent on androgen. Unless rescued by perinatal androgens, the SNB mot...

RATIONALE Studies of hypoglossal (XII) motoneurons that innervate the genioglossus muscle, an upper airway dilator, suggested that the suppression of upper airway motor tone during REM sleep is caused by withdrawal of excitation mediated by norepinephrine and serotonin. OBJECTIVES Our objectives were to determine whether antagonism of aminergic receptors located in the XII nucleus region can ...