1. A study has been made of the sensitivity of single neurones in the pericruciate cortex of anaesthetized and unanaesthetized cats to cholinomimetics administered electrophoretically from multibarrel micropipettes.2. A high proportion of deep pyramidal cells, including Betz cells, were excited by these substances, and the receptors involved have muscarinic characteristics.3. Atropine specifically reduced the sensitivity of cortical neurones to acetylcholine, but no such action could be demonstrated for dihydro-beta-erythroidine, gallamine or general anaesthetics.4. The significance of these results is discussed in relation to the possible synaptic or non-synaptic action of acetylcholine upon cortical neurones.

Animals↗

PubMed1966

Acetylcholine sensitivity of cerebellar neurones in the cat.

1. Cholinomimetics, acetylcholine antagonists and some other compounds of pharmacological interest were administered electrophoretically near neurones within the vermal cerebellar cortex of anaesthetized (pentobarbitone) and unanaesthetized (cerveau isolé) cats.2. The neurones were identified by position within the cortex, spontaneous activity, and the responses to afferent and antidromic stimulation.3. Purkinje cells, but neither granule nor basket cells, were excited by cholinomimetics, and the acetylcholine receptors had muscarinic properties. Excitation was often preceded by depression of the spontaneous firing.4. Intravenously administered atropine and dihydro-beta-erythroidine did not depress the synaptic excitation of cerebellar neurones evoked by impulses in mossy, climbing or parallel fibres.5. Acetylcholine is thus unlikely to be an excitatory transmitter within the feline cerebellum, particularly at mossy fibre-granule cell synapses, despite the presence of relatively high levels of acetylcholinesterase within mossy fibre terminals.

Acetylcholine↗

PubMed1965