Actions on gamma-motoneurones elicited by electrical stimulation of cutaneous afferent fibres in the hind limb of the cat.

The reflex actions elicited by graded electrical stimulation of hind-limb cutaneous (sural, superficial peroneal and tibial) nerves were investigated with intra- and extracellular micro-electrode recordings in gamma-motoneurones projecting to hind-limb muscles in twenty-four cats anaesthetized with alpha-chloralose. In total, reflex responses of 100 gamma-motoneurones were analysed. 82 of the gamma-cells were classified as dynamic (43) or static (39) using the method of mesencephalic stimulation (Appelberg, Hulliger, Johansson & Sojka, 1982). The general responsiveness (i.e. number of input nerves with effect/number of input nerves tested) of the whole sample of gamma-cells to stimulation of skin nerves was extremely high (94.8%). All negative observations were encountered among static and non-classified gamma-cells. Generally, the stimulation strengths needed for evoking effects in the gamma-cells were very low. A majority of the excitatory effects in the dynamic cells appeared with stimulation intensities below 1.5 threshold (T), while most static cells were excited with stimulation strengths between 1.5 and 2 T. Also a statistical comparison of the populations of stimulation strength thresholds for the excitatory effects revealed a significant difference (P less than 0.0009) between dynamic and static gamma-cells. By contrast, the thresholds for inhibitory effects in dynamic cells were slightly higher than for excitatory effects (P less than 0.0009). As regards excitation of static cells, inhibition of dynamic cells and inhibition of static cells, no statistically significant threshold differences were found. A strong dominance of excitation over inhibition was found in both dynamic and static flexor (posterior biceps and semitendinosus) gamma-motoneurones from all input nerves. In comparison to flexor gamma-motoneurones, there was a much higher incidence of inhibitory and mixed (excitatory and inhibitory) responses in extensor (triceps) gamma-motoneurones, from all nerves tested. For dynamic cells there was an about even balance between excitation and inhibition, while for static cells inhibition seemed to prevail. The latencies for excitatory effects in dynamic gamma-cells differed from those in static gamma-cells (P less than 0.027). The shortest latencies of excitatory effects found for dynamic gamma-cells indicate a disynaptic coupling, while for static cells the shortest route seemed to involve at least three synapses.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)