Vestibular and optokinetic eye movements evoked in the cat by rotation about a tilted axis.

Horizontal and vertical eye movements were recorded from cats in response to either off-vertical axis rotation (OVAR) at a range of velocities (5-72 deg/s) and a range of tilts (0-60 deg) or horizontal (with respect to the cat) optokinetic stimulation (10-80 deg/s), also around a range of tilted axes (0-60 deg). The responses to stopping either of these stimuli were also measured: post-rotatory nystagmus (PRN) following actual rotation, and optokinetic after nystagmus (OKAN) following optokinetic stimulation. The response found during OVAR was a nystagmus with a bias slow-phase velocity that was sinusoidally modulated. The bias was dependent on the tilt and reached 50% of its maximum velocity (maximum was 73 +/- 23% of the table velocity) at a tilt of 16 deg. The phase of modulation in horizontal eye velocity bore no consistent relation to the angular rotation. The amplitude of this modulation was roughly correlated with the bias with a slope of 0.13 (deg/s) modulation/(deg/s) bias velocity. There was also a low-velocity vertical bias with the slow-phases upwardly directed. The vertical bias was also modulated and the amplitude depended on the bias velocity (0.27 (deg/s) modulation/(deg/s) bias velocity). When separated from the canal dependent response, the build up of the OVAR response had a time constant of 5.0 +/- 0.8 s. Following OVAR there was no decline in the time constant of PRN which remained at the value measured during earth-vertical axis rotation (EVAR) (6.3 +/- 2 s). The peak amplitude of PRN was reduced, dependent on the tilt, reaching only 20% of its EVAR value for a tilt of 20 deg. When a measurable PRN was found, it was accompanied by a slowly-emerging vertical component (time constant 5.4 +/- 2 s) the effect of which was to vector the PRN accurately onto the earth horizontal. OKN measured about a tilted axis showed no differences in magnitude or direction from EVAR OKN even for tilts as large as 60 deg. OKAN following optokinetic stimulation around a tilted axis appeared normal in the horizontal plane (with respect to the animal) but was accompanied by a slowly emerging (time constant 4.1 +/- 2 s) vertical component, the effect of which was to vector the overall OKAN response onto the earth horizontal for tilts less than 20 deg. These results are compared with data from monkey and man and discussed in terms of the involvement of the velocity storage mechanism.