HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS		QUICK SEARCH:   [advanced] Author: Keyword(s): Year:  Vol:  Page:

This Article Full Text Full Text (PDF) All Versions of this Article: 96/6/2915    most recent 00013.2006v2 00013.2006v1 Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Citation Map Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via ISI Web of Science (3) Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Zhou, W. Articles by King, W. M. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Zhou, W. Articles by King, W. M.

Responses of Monkey Vestibular-Only Neurons to Translation and Angular Rotation

¹Departments of Neurology, ²Otolaryngology, and ³Anatomy, University of Mississippi Medical Center, Jackson, Mississippi; ⁴Department of Otolaryngology, University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, Texas; and ⁵Department of Otolaryngology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan

Submitted 5 January 2006; accepted in final form 22 August 2006

Single-unit recordings were obtained from central vestibular neurons in three monkeys during passive head movements. Neurons that discharged in relation to head translation or changes in head orientation, but not eye movement ("vestibular-only," n = 154), were examined in detail. Neuronal discharge rates were analyzed during four stimulus conditions: sinusoidal head translation in the horizontal plane (0.2–4 Hz, 0.2 g peak acceleration), static head tilt in the vertical plane (±20°), oscillatory head tilt (0.5–2 Hz), and sinusoidal angular rotation about an earth-vertical axis (0.5 or 1 Hz). Vestibular-only cells were divided into two groups based on the regularity of their spontaneous discharge rates (CV*). One group (low-sensitivity units) exhibited regular discharge rates (CV* < 0.2), weak discharge modulation during head translation (<25 spikes · s^–1 · g^–1 at f = 1 Hz), and persistent discharge rates related to static head tilt (0.68 spikes · s^–1 · °^–1 of head tilt). The second group (high sensitivity neurons) exhibited irregular discharge rates (CV* > 0.2), strong discharge modulation during head translation (100 spikes · s^–1 · g^–1 at f = 1 Hz), and little or no change in discharge rate during static head tilt (0.32 spikes · s^–1 · °^–1). The firing rates of some neurons in both groups were modulated during rotation about an earth-vertical axis (42%), but the modulation was greater for neurons classified as high sensitivity units. Previous reports have described neurons similar to the high sensitivity group; however, the low sensitivity or tilt neurons have not previously been characterized. Significantly, recent theoretical models have predicted neurons with discharge patterns similar to those of low- and high-sensitivity neurons.

This article has been cited by other articles:

				T. Yakusheva, P. M. Blazquez, and D. E. Angelaki Frequency-Selective Coding of Translation and Tilt in Macaque Cerebellar Nodulus and Uvula J. Neurosci., October 1, 2008; 28(40): 9997 - 10009. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				H. Meng, P. J. May, J. D. Dickman, and D. E. Angelaki Vestibular Signals in Primate Thalamus: Properties and Origins J. Neurosci., December 12, 2007; 27(50): 13590 - 13602. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				H. Zhu, J. R. Jordan, S. P. G. Hardy, B. Fulcher, C. Childress, C. Varner, B. Windham, B. Jeffcoat, R. W. Rockhold, and W. Zhou Linear acceleration-evoked cardiovascular responses in awake rats J Appl Physiol, August 1, 2007; 103(2): 646 - 654. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]