Search results for "Oculomotor nucleus"
showing 8 items of 8 documents
Effect of claustrum stimulation on neurons of the contralateral medial oculomotor area, in the cat
1990
In chloralose-anaesthetized cats, the extracellular spontaneous unitary activity was recorded from 157 neurons, located in the medial oculomotor area. 98 units were identified as projecting onto the superior colliculus. Electrical stimulations of the contralateral claustrum provoked, on 13 of these cells, an excitatory effect, lasting 10-35 ms and appearing with a latency of 20-50 ms. Full length section of the corpus callosum totally abolished the contralateral claustrum effect. The results suggest that in the cat, the claustrum may have a role in the bilateral control of the visuo-motor performance.
A Pathway in the Brainstem for Roll-Tilt of the Subjective Visual Vertical: Evidence from a Lesion–Behavior Mapping Study
2012
The perceived subjective visual vertical (SVV) is an important sign of a vestibular otolith tone imbalance in the roll plane. Previous studies suggested that unilateral pontomedullary brainstem lesions cause ipsiversive roll-tilt of SVV, whereas pontomesencephalic lesions cause contraversive roll-tilts of SVV. However, previous data were of limited quality and lacked a statistical approach. We therefore tested roll-tilt of the SVV in 79 human patients with acute unilateral brainstem lesions due to stroke by applying modern statistical lesion–behavior mapping analysis. Roll-tilt of the SVV was verified to be a brainstem sign, and for the first time it was confirmed statistically that lesions…
Localization of parvalbumin, calretinin, and calbindin D-28k in identified extraocular motoneurons and internuclear neurons of the cat
1998
Calcium-binding proteins have been shown to be excellent markers of specific neuronal populations. We aimed to characterize the expression of calcium-binding proteins in identified populations of the cat extraocular motor nuclei by means of immunohistochemistry against parvalbumin, calretinin, and calbindin D-28k. Abducens, medial rectus, and trochlear motoneurons were retrogradely labeled with horseradish peroxidase from their corresponding muscles. Oculomotor and abducens internuclear neurons were retrogradely labeled after horseradish peroxidase injection into either the abducens or the oculomotor nucleus, respectively. Parvalbumin staining produced the highest density of immunoreactive …
Slowed abduction saccades in bilateral internuclear ophthalmoplegia
1992
Horizontal eye movements were investigated in 65 patients with bilateral internuclear ophthalmoplegia utilizing direct current electro-oculography. Abduction saccades were slowed in 35 patients (53.8%), being hypermetric in 65.7% of them. Slowing of abduction saccades is attributed to impaired inhibition of the tonic resting activity of the antagonistic medial rectus muscle. Experimental data indicate that this slowing results from a lesion of an uncrossed connection between the pontine reticular formation and the oculomotor nucleus. The prevalence of hypermetric abduction saccades increased with increasing severity of adduction paresis on the opposite eye. This confirms the view that media…
The Internuclear Ophthalmoplegias
1993
Internuclear ophthalmoplegia (INO), which is caused by an ipsilateral medial longitudinal fasciculus (MLF) lesion, is characterized by adduction paresis of lateral gaze, usually with spared convergence [1–4]. In the opposite eye, abduction nystagmus and hypermetric abduction saccades are the main clinical and electro-oculographic abnormalities [1, 5, 6]. The origin of both is still debated. Abduction nystagmus has been explained by (a) an additional horizontal gaze paresis [7]; (b) vergence mechanisms aimed at alignment of the visual axes [8]; (c) interruption of descending excitatory projections from oculomotor nucleus internuclear neurons to contralateral abducens nucleus motoneurons [9];…
Response of abducens internuclear neurons to axotomy in the adult cat
2000
The highly specific projection of abducens internuclear neurons on the medial rectus motoneurons of the oculomotor nucleus constitutes an optimal model for investigating the effects of axotomy in the central nervous system. We have analyzed the morphological changes induced by this lesion on both the cell bodies and the transected axons of abducens internuclear neurons in the adult cat. Axotomy was performed by the transection of the medial longitudinal fascicle. Cell counts of Nissl-stained material and calretinin-immunostained abducens internuclear neurons revealed no cell death by 3 months postaxotomy. Ultrastructural examination of these cells at 6, 14, 24, and 90 days postaxotomy showe…
The Relationship Between the Stomatognathic System and Body Posture
2009
In recent years, many researchers have investigated the various factors that can influence body posture: mood states, anxiety, head and neck positions, oral functions (respiration, swallowing), oculomotor and visual systems, and the inner ear. Recent studies indicate a role for trigeminal afferents on body posture, but this has not yet been demonstrated conclusively. The present study aims to review the papers that have shown a relationship between the stomatognathic system and body posture. These studies suggest that tension in the stomatognathic system can contribute to impaired neural control of posture. Numerous anatomical connections between the stomatognathic system’s proprioceptive i…
Internuclear ophthalmoplegia of abduction: clinical and electrophysiological data on the existence of an abduction paresis of prenuclear origin.
1992
Three patients showed unilateral and five bilateral abduction paresis. Five had associated adduction nystagmus of the contralateral eye. Electrophysiological testing of masseter and blink reflexes indicated an ipsilateral rostral pontine or mesencephalic lesion, and excluded a lesion of the infranuclear portion of the abducens nerve. Abduction paresis was attributed to impaired inhibition of the tonic resting activity of the antagonistic medial rectus muscle. The prenuclear origin of the disorder is based on morphological and neurophysiological evidence of an ipsilateral inhibitory connection between the paramedian pontine reticular formation and the oculomotor nucleus running close to but …