INFORMATION CODING IN VESTIBULAR NUCLEI NEURONS

前庭感觉器官的疾病或创伤经常发生，导致 到急性前庭病变，然后是慢性中枢代偿。 中枢代偿发生在前庭核神经元 接收来自半圆形渠道和耳石器官的信息 前庭迷宫。这些神经元将信息处理成 提供前庭和前庭脊髓的编码输出信号 反射，以及对头部和身体的有意识的感知 太空。令人惊讶的是，尽管许多调查已经 前庭核神经元的反应性研究进展 刺激外周前庭器官，它还没有被 可能确定这些神经元是如何处理传入信息的 从不同的半规管转换成综合输出信号。 由于来自前庭核团的信息呈现给不同的 与不同的反射和感觉功能相关的大脑区域， 了解前庭神经元使用的机制是很重要的 以产生与投射目标的功能相关的信号。 拟议的研究将第一次检查人们的反应。 前庭核神经元对动态刺激的反应特性 单独的半规管。每种类型的特定激活 半规管器官将由一种独特的机械产生 这是我实验室最近开发的一种刺激技术。 前庭核神经元的单独传入输入将会， 因此，可以单独操作，从而允许量化 这些神经元的信息合成机制有待描述 使用电生理记录。为了确定 前庭核神经元的投射模式和形态， 辣根逆行激活和细胞内染色 过氧化物酶将在以前的细胞中获得 具有顺序性、电性和机械性的生理特征 刺激半规管。全面的数据，关于 前庭神经核团的形态和生理特征 神经元将允许直接的结构-功能关系 中枢性前庭系统将被衍生。以前更有效 前庭系统障碍的治疗是可以实现的，相关 关于前庭核团神经元信息编码的知识必须 获得者。

Disease or trauma of the vestibular sensory organs often occur, leading to acute vestibular pathology followed by chronic central compensation. Central compensation takes place in the vestibular nuclei neurons that receive information from the semi-circular canals and otolith organs in the vestibular labyrinth. These neurons process the information into a coded output signal that provides for the vestibular and vestibulospinal reflexes, as well as the conscious perception of the head and body in space. It is surprising to find that although many investigations have reported on the responsiveness of vestibular nuclei neurons to stimulation of the peripheral vestibular organs, it has not yet been possible to determine how these neurons process afferent information from the different semicircular canals into an integrated output signal. Since information from the vestibular nuclei is presented to different brain regions associated with differing reflexive and sensory functions, it is important to understand the mechanisms used by vestibular neurons to produce a signal that is relevant to the projected target's function. The proposed studies will, for the first time, examine the response properties of vestibular nuclei neurons to dynamic stimulation of individual semicircular canals. The specific activation of each semicircular canal organ will be produced by a unique mechanical stimulation technique that was recently developed in my laboratory. Separate afferent inputs to the vestibular nuclei neurons will, therefore, be individually manipulated allowing the quantitative mechanisms of information synthesis in these neurons to be delineated using electrophysiological recordings. In order to determine the projection patterns and morphology of vestibular nuclei neurons, antidromic activation and intracellular staining with horseradish peroxidase will be obtained in cells that were previously physiologically characterized with orthodromic electrical and mechanical stimulation of the semicircular canals. Comprehensive data regarding the morphological and physiological characteristics of vestibular nuclei neurons will allow direct structure-function relationships in the central vestibular system to be derived. Before more effective treatments of vestibular system disorders ca be realized, relevant knowledge about information coding in vestibular nuclei neurons must be acquired.