Auditory responses in the torus semicircularis of the cane toad, Bufo marinus. I. Field potential studies

Field potentials have been recorded in the torus semicircularis of the toad, Bufo marinus, in response to brief tones presented in the free field. The amplitude of the potentials varied with the frequency of the stimulus and location of the electrode along the rostro-caudal axis of the torus. All frequencies in the auditory range evoked largest potentials when the stimulus was located in the contralateral auditory field. Potentials evoked by low to mid frequencies were largest when the stimulus was located near the line orthogonal to the long axis of the animal. For progressively higher frequencies, the optimal stimulus position was progressively more anterior in the contralateral field. In animals in which one eighth nerve had been sectioned, field potentials evoked by tones of low to mid frequency were less sensitive to changes in stimulus direction than in normal animals. However, the directional sensitivity of field potentials evoked by mid to high frequencies was similar in monaural and normal animals. These observations suggest that binaural neural integration is important in determining the directional sensitivity of field potentials in the torus evoked by low to mid frequencies but not for potentials evoked by mid to high frequencies.     

Event-related potentials in an auditory oddball situation in the rat

Evoked potentials were recorded from the auditory cortex of both freely moving and anesthetized rats when deviant sounds were presented in a homogenous series of standard sounds (oddball condition). A component of the evoked response to deviant sounds, the mismatch negativity (MMN), may underlie the ability to discriminate acoustic differences, a fundamental aspect of auditory perception. Whereas most MMN studies in animals have been done using simple sounds, this study involved a more complex set of sounds (synthesized vowels). The freely moving rats had previously undergone behavioral training in which they learned to respond differentially to these sounds. Although we found little evidence in this preparation for the typical, epidurally recorded, MMN response, a significant difference between deviant and standard evoked potentials was noted for the freely moving animals in the 100-200 ms range following stimulus onset. No such difference was found in the anesthetized animals.     

Role of phasic changes in sound signal in localization of auditory image

The work presents experimental data on certain changes in electrical responses of the auditory system's midbrain centre in a contraphasic binaural presentation of sound impulse series. Neuronal cortical activity is selective in respect to dynamic interaural changes of signals' phasic spectre which may serve as a basis for the mechanisms of localising a moving source of sound. Human auditory evoked potentials reveal a manifestation of memorizing the auditory image movement direction as shown by appearance of stimuli deviant from standard mismatch negativity.     

Human Long-Latency Auditory Evoked Potentials during Radial Motion of the Sound Source

Human long-latency auditory evoked potentials were studied during simulation with variable-amplitude pulse sequences from a sound source moving to and from the subject. The N1 peak parameters were shown to depend on an accurate estimate of the direction of the change in the distance to the sound source. Differences in the processing of signals that simulated the approaching and/or distancing of the sound source were found in the N1 and P2 component parameters of on- and off-responses as was a more pronounced long negative potential shift in the evoked response to the approaching source as compared to the distancing source.     

Interweaving and overlapping of evoked potentials

The refractory effect of one stimulus upon the response to a closely following stimulus in a different modality is much less than upon the response to a stimulus in the same modality. It is therefore far more efficient to record responses to stimuli in different modalities concurrently than to record each one separately. We evaluated 2 techniques for concurrent recording. Interweaving involves recording the response to one stimulus in the intervals between recording responses to other stimuli. Overlapping occurs when two or more responses are at times being simulateneously recorded. Interweaving and overlapping reduced the time required to record auditory brain-stem responses, short-latency somatosensory evoked potentials and pattern-reversal visual evoked potentials by a factor of 3 over the time required to record each response separately. Overlapping caused no significant change in the evoked potentials. Depending upon the actual timing schedule, interweaving may distort the evoked potentials if later parts of the response to one stimulus override the evoked potential to a following stimulus. Filtering and randomization of stimulus timing may attenuate the effects of these overriding potentials.     

Spatial analysis of motor unit potentials of the rat medial gastrocnemius

The spatial analysis of the potentials of single motor units of the rat medial gastrocnemius muscle evoked by stimulation of the fibres of split ventral roots was carried out with a bipolar electrode moving in the direction perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the muscle fibres. During this movement of the electrode a variability was observed in the time of the biphasic potential from its maximum to minimum, and in the peak-to-peak amplitude of these potentials. The potentials recorded outside the territory of the motor unit had a lower amplitude in relation to the potentials from the territory of the unit. This made localization of the motor unit on the cross-section of the muscle possible. Differences in the duration of the potential from maximal to minimal amplitude (maximum-minimum amplitude time--M-MAT) of each investigated motor unit from successive recording sites reflected the number of fibres contributing to the action potential and the distance of the recording surface of the electrode from the zone of the motor end-plates of this motor unit. The greatest diameter of the territory of the observed motor units reached 2.5 mm.     

Modulation of the reaction rate of regulating protein induces large morphological and motional change of amoebic cell

Morphologies of moving amoebae are categorized into two types. One is the "neutrophil" type in which the long axis of cell roughly coincides with its moving direction. This type of cell extends a leading edge at the front and retracts a narrow tail at the rear, whose shape has been often drawn as a typical amoeba in textbooks. The other one is the "keratocyte" type with widespread lamellipodia along the front side arc. Short axis of cell in this type roughly coincides with its moving direction. In order to understand what kind of molecular feature causes conversion between two types of morphologies, and how two typical morphologies are maintained, a mathematical model of amoebic cells is developed. This model describes movement of cell and intracellular reactions of activator, inhibitor and actin filaments in a unified way. It is found that the producing rate of activator is a key factor of conversion between two types. This model also explains the observed data that the keratocyte type cells tend to rapidly move along a straight line. The neutrophil type cells move along a straight line when the moving velocity is small, but they show fluctuated motions deviating from a line when they move as fast as the keratocyte type cells. Efficient energy consumption in the neutrophil type cells is predicted.     

Evoked potentials of the cat inferior colliculus to acoustic stimuli simulating sound source movement with different velocities in opposite directions

Amplitude changes of inferior colliculus evoked potentials (EPs) in anaesthetized adult cats were studied under presentation of acoustic stimuli simulating both azimuth-moving and stationary sound source. The movement was simulated with gradual changes of interaural time delay between binaurally presented click trains. It was shown that the amplitude of EPs elicited by "moving" signals depended on the velocity of movement. Amplitude differences between EPs to "moving" and stationary stimuli were observed under motion velocities up to 320 deg./s. The greatest response amplitudes in different experiments took place under velocities within the range of 67-320 deg./s with most of them recorded under velocities of 170 and 125 deg./s. Amplitude of the responses to lateral-medial movement with any velocity were always greater than those to opposite direction of movement with the same velocity.     

A model for direction selectivity in threshold motion perception

Thresholds were measured for a moving line superimposed on moving sinusoidal gratings. When line and grating moved in the same direction significant subthreshold summation was observed over a range of spatial frequencies. For motion of the line and grating in opposite directions, summation was never observed. This supports the hypothesis that direction selective mechanisms are responsible for motion perception at threshold. Further analysis of the data produced estimates of the spatial frequency tuning of these mechanisms. A quantitative model is proposed to interpret the data, and it is suggested that flickering gratings are not decomposed into their moving components by the visual system.     

The sensory functions of the cerebellum of the thornback ray,Platyrhinoidis triseriata

Summary Single unit spikes and evoked field potentials were recorded in different parts and depths of the corpus cerebelli and auricle of immobilized rays before and after stimulating with light, electric fields, touch, tail bending and direct shock to mechanoreceptive nerves of the lateral line.Discrete areas of the cerebellum are responsive to these modalities and the areas show limited overlap; they are all distinct from the area reported by Plassmann to be responsive to angular acceleration. The visual and tactile-proprioceptive areas are large; the electric area is small. Most units are excited only by one modality.The tail is represented only in the posterior lobe; trigeminal innervation extends from the posterior onto the anterior lobe, suggesting some topographic projection.The dynamic characteristics of the responses were examined particulary in the visual units. To a flash, units discharge up to six bursts of spikes in 500 ms. This pattern is reduced at repetition rates > 1/s; above ca. 4/s units tend to fire irregularly. Various kinds of units are found in respect to the succession of responses to short trains of flashes. Some units fire much better to objects moving in a limited visual field with a certain direction and rate.Abbreviation EP evoked potential     

Electrophysiological analysis of cortico-tectal connections in the turtle

Two types of evoked potentials are recorded in the tectum mesencephali in response to electrical stimulation of the forebrain surface of the turtleEmys orbicularis. The results of a layer-by-layer analysis show that evoked potentials of type I in response to stimulation of the hippocampal and piriform cortex are generated outside the tectum. Evoked potentials of type II, consisting of two surface-negative components, are recorded in the tectum in response to stimulation of the rostro-central surface of the forebrain. The first component appeared after a latent period of 20 msec and lasted 40–60 msec; the second component appeared after 80–100 msec and lasted 100–300 msec. Layer-by-layer and pharmacological analysis showed that the first component of the type II evoked potential is generated in the tegmental structures of the mesencephalon, whereas the second (long-latency) is generated in the tectum. The tectal origin of the second component is confirmed by its interaction with the tectal response to photic stimulation or to electrical stimulation of the optic nerve, evidence that these evoked potentials are generated by common structures. The efferent pathway from the dorsal cortex to the primary visual center is unilateral and has features of polysynaptic projections (long latent period, low lability).     

Functional organization of projection zones of lateral line organs in the midbrain of Raja clavata

The character and distribution of evoked potentials in the midbrain during electrical stimulation of the lateral line nerves were investigated in acute experiments on the ray (Raja clavata). The clearest response was observed on the contralateral side of the dorsal surface. The evoked potentials consisted of several components. The initial high-frequency component is regarded as presynaptic. The principal slow component of the evoked potential corresponds to postsynaptic processes. The lateral line organs have spatially differentiated representation with partial overlapping of the projection zones.I. P. Pavlov Institute of Physiology, Academy of Sciences of the USSR, Leningrad. Translated from Neirofiziologiya, Vol. 5, No. 4, pp. 384–391, July–August, 1973.     

Physiological characteristics of the synaptic response of an identified sensory nonspiking interneuron in the crayfish Procambarus clarkii girard

Voltage-dependent variability in the shape of synaptic responses of the LDS interneuron, an identified nonspiking cell of crayfish, to mechanosensory stimulation was studied using intracellular recording and current injection techniques. Stimulation of the sensory root ipsilateral to the interneuron soma evoked a large depolarizing synaptic response. Its peak amplitude was decreased and the time course was shortened when the LDS interneuron was depolarized by current injection. When the cell was hyperpolarized, the peak amplitude was increased and the time course was prolonged. Upon large hyperpolarization, however, the amplitude did not increase further while the time course showed a slight decrease. The dendritic membrane of the LDS interneuron was found to show an outward rectification upon depolarization and an inward rectification upon large hyperpolarization. Current injection experiments at varying membrane potentials revealed that the voltage-dependent changes in the shape of the synaptic response were based on an increase in membrane conductance due to the rectifying properties of the LDS interneuron. Stimulation of the contralateral root evoked a small depolarizing potential comprising an early excitatory response and a later inhibitory component. Its shape also varied depending on the membrane potential in a manner similar to that of the synaptic response evoked ipsilaterally.     

Global brain dynamics of transient visual evoked potentials

The independent component analysis was applied to multichannel transient visual evoked potentials elicited by a high contrast pattern-reversal and motion-onset (motion velocity of 7 and 23 deg/s). Three overlapping independent components with different topographical distribution over the scalp were described. The first component displayed similar timing in response to all three stimuli (40-200 ms) but was a different in shape and scalp projection. This activation component is considered to reflect the stimulus properties. The second component (100-227 ms), related to negativity at about 160 ms, can be referred to visual processing of motion. The last component, attributed to positivity at 230 ms dominates in the fronto-central area and might represent a cognitive process.     

用独立分量分析和小波变换方法研究实验过程中脑诱发电位信号强度的变化

诱发电位的提取通常依靠相干平均方法,需要进行多次的重复刺激,实验时间较长。随着实验时间的增加,受试者生理因素及环境因素的变化,会影响诱发电位的正常形态(波形、强度和相位)。利用独立分量分析和小波变换方法,通过时域信息和空域信息的综合应用,可成功提取到听觉诱发电位晚成分的强度在实验过程中的变化,对由于实验时间增加对晚成分的影响做出定量评价。结果表明,在10min左右的实验过程中,听觉诱发电位晚成分的幅度会下降约40％。     

Visual acuity thresholds of juvenile loggerhead sea turtles (Caretta caretta): an electrophysiological approach

Visual evoked potentials measure dynamic properties of the visual system by recording transient electric responses of neural tissue identified to correspond to a specific visual stimulus, such as light or a striped grid. In this study, visual evoked potentials were used to test the visual acuity of juvenile loggerhead sea turtles (Caretta caretta) in water. Subject animals were fitted with a Plexiglas goggle filled with filtered seawater. Stimuli of black and white striped gratings were presented to the turtles using a slide projector directing an image onto a screen via a rotatable mirror that shifted the striped pattern laterally one-half cycle. Bioelectric activity was collected using a digital averaging computer and subdermal platinum electrodes, implanted under the head scutes directly above the optic nerve and the contralateral optic tectum. To isolate the response signal from the noise, signal averaging techniques were used when collecting visual evoked potentials. The resulting response waveforms included a robust positive-negative compound that was used to track the turtle's response to visual stimulation. Acuity thresholds for these sea turtles, which were derived from linear regressions analysis of the positive-negative compound amplitudes versus stripe size, ranged from 0.130 to 0.215. This acuity level is comparable to other inshore, shallow water marine species.     

The stress of mortally dangerous conditions: the individual psychophysiological mechanisms of adaptation in life-threatening situations

Investigation into the mechanisms of the individual psychophysiological adaptation to life-threatening situations was performed. The data analysis of evoked potentials induced with verbal stimuli in 30-50-msec exposures was executed. Cross-correlation and wavelet analysis, as well as neurone algorithms were used to define total brain response to each stimulus and its duration. Correlation of the estimated parameters with subconscious aspects of psychic activity is discussed. Results of the studies performed with this neurosemantie method in various groups of subjects perceiving threat to life in the course of their performance, are presented. Described changes in the subconscious response mechanisms can help to clarify the direction for creation of new approaches with psychological correction and support.     

Mathematical description of the stimuli to the lateral line system of fish derived from a three-dimensional flow field analysis

The three-dimensional potential flow field around a moving fish with an axially symmetric body is investigated mathematically. The case of a moving fish in open water and that of one approaching a plane surface in front of it are considered. For these cases the spatial and temporal distributions of the stimuli to the lateral line system are derived from the flow field analysis. This is done in dependence on the shape and the size of the fish.     

大鼠脊髓诱发电位与脊髓损伤的关系——Ⅲ.脊髓局部损毁后电位的变化及电位来源分析

本文描述了大鼠脊髓L_1节段后柱、后索、侧索和前角的诱发电位及其损伤后的变化,并观察了切断L_4、L_5脊神经背、腹根与横断高位颈髓对电位的影响,以进行行电位来源分析。结果可见,上述四个区域的诱发电位基本由早反应三相波和晚反应组成。分别电解损毁这些部位后,电位波幅均普遍降低,晚期反应较早反应降低明显。后柱或后索受损对电位影响最大。局部损毁后可见L_1及T_(13)水平的硬膜上电位改变明显,尤其晚反应减弱、波峰平坦。反应时值与潜伏时未见明显改变。切断L_4脊神经背、腹根后、电位基本消失。去大脑对电位未见明显影响。结果表明,刺激坐骨神经诱发的脊髓电位起源于低位腰段传入神经和脊髓内多通路的兴奋传导,在一定程度上受腹根逆行活动的影响,与大脑及脊髓下行传导束活动无直接联系。脊髓诱发电位的幅度与波形改变可作为脊髓损伤的判断指标之一。