PubMed · 9097641
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N Kohara. 1997. [F wave conduction study].. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/9097641/
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Many materials have been used for artificial tubular prostheses to assist peripheral nerve gap reconstruction. However, the clinical use of these devices has been restricted because a microsurgical procedure requires specialized techniques and expensive equipment, such as operating microscope systems. Therefore the authors developed a new gluing method, without sutures, that uses freeze-dried alginate gel. A 7-mm gap in the sciatic nerve of rats was bridged with freeze-dried alginate gel. Regeneration was evaluated by electrophysiologic testing and histologic study. Eighteen weeks after surgery, functional reinnervation of motor and sensory nerves had occurred, as demonstrated by recovery of compound muscle action potentials (CMAP), compound nerve action potentials (CNAP), and somatosensory-evoked potentials (SEP). Histologically, many regenerated nerve fasciculi, including myelinated and unmyelinated fibers, were observed and the implanted alginate gel had disappeared. In conclusion, a gluing technique using alginate gel is a potential alternative to the conventional nerve autograft technique. Advantages include simple application and rapid repair. Freeze-dried alginate gel is a promising material for artificial nerve guides for peripheral nerves and also could be used for repair of disrupted pathways in central nervous tissue that is amorphous and cannot be sutured.
We studied the effects of reversible cooling between 35 and 7 C on membrane properties and spike generation of cells in slices of rat visual cortex. Cooling led to a depolarization of the neurones and an increase of the input resistance, thus bringing the cells closer to spiking threshold. Excitability, measured with intracellular current steps, increased with cooling. Synaptic stimuli were most efficient in producing spikes at room temperature, but strong stimulation could evoke spikes even below 10 C. Spike width and total area increased with cooling, and spike amplitude was maximal between 12 and 20 C. Repetitive firing was enhanced in some cells by cooling to 20-25 C, but was always suppressed at lower temperatures. With cooling, passive potassium conductance decreased and the voltage-gated potassium current had a higher activation threshold and lower amplitude. At the same time, neither passive sodium conductance nor the activation threshold of voltage-dependent sodium channels changed. Therefore changing the temperature modifies the ratio between potassium and sodium conductances, and thus alters basic membrane properties. Data from two cells recorded in slices of cat visual cortex suggest a similar temperature dependence of the membrane properties of neocortical neurones to that described above in the rat. These results provide a framework for comparison of the data recorded at different temperatures, but also show the limitations of extending the conclusions drawn from in vitro data obtained at room temperature to physiological temperatures. Further, when cooling is used as an inactivation tool in vivo, it should be taken into account that the mechanism of inactivation is a depolarization block. Only a region cooled below 10 C is reliably silenced, but it is always surrounded by a domain of hyperexcitable cells.
The actions of group II muscle afferents projecting to the lower-lumbar (L6 and L7) segments of the cat spinal cord were investigated by recording the cord dorsum and focal synaptic field potentials evoked by electrical stimulation of hindlimb muscle nerves. Cord dorsum potentials recorded over the lower-lumbar segments were generally much smaller than those produced by group II afferents terminating within the midlumbar and sacral segments. Only group II afferents of tibialis posterior produced potentials with an amplitude (mean maximal amplitude 39 microV, n = 7) approaching that of potentials over other segments. Focal synaptic potentials (mean maximal amplitudes 135-200 microV) were evoked by group II afferents of the following muscle nerves, listed in order of effectiveness: quadriceps, tibialis posterior (throughout L6 and L7), gastrocnemius soleus, flexor digitorum longus, posterior biceps-semitendinosus and popliteus (mainly within L7). Field potentials were recorded in the dorsal horn (laminae IV-V) and also more ventrally in a region which included the lateral part of the intermediate zone (lateral to the large group I intermediate field potentials) and often extended into the ventral horn (laminae V-VII). The latencies of the group II potentials are considered compatible with the monosynaptic actions of the fastest conducting group II muscle afferents. The results are compared with morphological evidence on the pattern of termination of group II muscle afferents in the lower-lumbar segments and with previous descriptions of the actions of group II muscle afferents in midlumbar and sacral segments.