Biomaterial Database

Responses of trigeminal ganglion neurons during natural whisking behaviors in the awake rat. 2007

Steven C Leiser, and Karen A Moxon

Drexel University, Department of Neurobiology and Anatomy, Philadelphia, PA 19129, USA.

Rats use their whiskers to locate and discriminate tactile features of their environment. Mechanoreceptors surrounding each whisker encode and transmit sensory information from the environment to the brain via afferents whose cell bodies lie in the trigeminal ganglion (Vg). These afferents are classified as rapidly (RA) or slowly (SA) adapting by their response to stimulation. The activity of these cells in the awake behaving rat is yet unknown. Therefore, we developed a method to chronically record Vg neurons during natural whisking behaviors and found that all cells exhibited (1) no neuronal activity when the whiskers were not in motion, (2) increased activity when the rat whisked, with activity correlated to whisk frequency, and (3) robust increases in activity when the whiskers contacted an object. Moreover, we observed distinct differences in the firing rates between RA and SA cells, suggesting that they encode distinct aspects of stimuli in the awake rat.

UI	MeSH Term	Description	Entries
D008297	Male		Males
D009475	Neurons, Afferent	Neurons which conduct NERVE IMPULSES to the CENTRAL NERVOUS SYSTEM.	Afferent Neurons,Afferent Neuron,Neuron, Afferent
D004594	Electrophysiology	The study of the generation and behavior of electrical charges in living organisms particularly the nervous system and the effects of electricity on living organisms.
D000200	Action Potentials	Abrupt changes in the membrane potential that sweep along the CELL MEMBRANE of excitable cells in response to excitation stimuli.	Spike Potentials,Nerve Impulses,Action Potential,Impulse, Nerve,Impulses, Nerve,Nerve Impulse,Potential, Action,Potential, Spike,Potentials, Action,Potentials, Spike,Spike Potential
D000344	Afferent Pathways	Nerve structures through which impulses are conducted from a peripheral part toward a nerve center.	Afferent Pathway,Pathway, Afferent,Pathways, Afferent
D000818	Animals	Unicellular or multicellular, heterotrophic organisms, that have sensation and the power of voluntary movement. Under the older five kingdom paradigm, Animalia was one of the kingdoms. Under the modern three domain model, Animalia represents one of the many groups in the domain EUKARYOTA.	Animal,Metazoa,Animalia
D012668	Trigeminal Ganglion	The semilunar-shaped ganglion containing the cells of origin of most of the sensory fibers of the trigeminal nerve. It is situated within the dural cleft on the cerebral surface of the petrous portion of the temporal bone and gives off the ophthalmic, maxillary, and part of the mandibular nerves.	Gasserian Ganglion,Semilunar Ganglion,Gasser's Ganglion,Trigeminal Ganglia,Ganglia, Trigeminal,Ganglion, Gasser's,Ganglion, Gasserian,Ganglion, Semilunar,Ganglion, Trigeminal,Gasser Ganglion,Gassers Ganglion,Semilunar Ganglions,Trigeminal Ganglias,Trigeminal Ganglions
D014110	Touch	Sensation of making physical contact with objects, animate or inanimate. Tactile stimuli are detected by MECHANORECEPTORS in the skin and mucous membranes.	Tactile Sense,Sense of Touch,Taction,Sense, Tactile,Senses, Tactile,Tactile Senses,Tactions,Touch Sense,Touch Senses
D014276	Trigeminal Nerve	The 5th and largest cranial nerve. The trigeminal nerve is a mixed motor and sensory nerve. The larger sensory part forms the ophthalmic, mandibular, and maxillary nerves which carry afferents sensitive to external or internal stimuli from the skin, muscles, and joints of the face and mouth and from the teeth. Most of these fibers originate from cells of the TRIGEMINAL GANGLION and project to the TRIGEMINAL NUCLEUS of the brain stem. The smaller motor part arises from the brain stem trigeminal motor nucleus and innervates the muscles of mastication.	Cranial Nerve V,Fifth Cranial Nerve,Nerve V,Nervus Trigeminus,Cranial Nerve, Fifth,Fifth Cranial Nerves,Nerve V, Cranial,Nerve Vs,Nerve, Fifth Cranial,Nerve, Trigeminal,Trigeminal Nerves,Trigeminus, Nervus
D014738	Vibrissae	Stiff hairs projecting from the face around the nose of most mammals, acting as touch receptors.	Whiskers,Whisker