Focused ultrasound in studies of somatic reception

Focused ultrasound has been used to elicit cutaneous tactile, thermal, specific and nonspecific pain sensations, and also subcutaneous (deep) sensations which included tactile and some pain sensations (muscular and periosteal etc.). It has been found that somatic reception can be attributed to mechanoreception, that the same receptive structures are involved in the sensations of warmth and cold, and that ultrasound has a sensitizing action. Studies have been made of sensation differences from corporal and auricular acupuncture points, and from some chosen skin and subcutaneous points.I. M. Sechenov Institute of Evolutionary Physiology and Biochemistry, Russian Academy of Sciences, Saint Petersburg. I. P. Pavlov Institute of Physiology, Russian Academy of Sciences, Saint Petersburg. Translated from Neirofiziologiya, Vol. 24, No. 5, pp. 529–534, September–October, 1992.     

Nociceptive sensitivity of the human skin during chronic psychoemotional stress

A comparative study of nociceptive sensitivity of the skin in 115 men (51 healthy and 64 with neurasthenia, a natural model of chronic psychoemotional stress) was undertaken with the aid of focused ultrasound. The group of patients revealed a distinct tendency for lowering of the pain threshold, weakening of adaptation to repeated presentation of a nociceptive stimulus of threshold strength, and sensitization. When these deviations were found in subjects, they were found to have a pain syndrome relatively more often. Since exposure to focused ultrasound of fairly high intensity involves primarily C afferents (not only cutaneous but also visceral nociceptors), it is suggested that the changes in nociceptive sensitivity observed in patients with neurasthenia are not confined to the skin, but extend also to the internal medium, facilitating the formation of a pain syndrome.I. P. Pavlov Institute of Physiology, Russian Academy of Sciences, Saint Petersburg. I. M. Sechenov Institute of Evolutionary Physiology and Biochemistry, Russian Academy of Sciences, Saint Petersburg. Translated from Neirofiziologiya, Vol. 24, No. 5, pp. 535–542, September–October, 1992.     

Ivan Mikhailovich Sechenov—the outstanding russian neurophysiologist and psychophysiologist

Contribution of the outstanding russian physiologist Ivan Mikhailovich Sechenov to establishment and development of neurophysiology and psychophysiology is considered. Analysis is presented of I.M. Sechenovs fundamental discoveries that laid foundation of the modern neurophysiology. Logic of formation of his objective physiological approach to analysis of psychic phenomena is followed. It is shown that I.M. Sechenov was the first psychophysiologist to approach analysis of human from systemic positions by considering reflex as a morpho-functional system that operates with signals from environment for the purpose of achievement of an expedient result.Translated from Zhurnal Evolyutsionnoi Biokhimii i Fiziologii, Vol. 40, No. 5, 2004, pp. 481–485.Original Russian Text Copyright © 2004 by Kanunikov.To the 175-Anniversary of I.M. Sechenov     

Pavlov vs. K?hler. Pavlov's little-known primate research

During the 1920s, I. P. Pavlov's scholarly interests broadened to consider problem-solving. Distrusting Wolfgang K?hler's Gestalt explanation of the problem-solving process and its interspecies aspects, Pavlov performed, from 1933 to 1936, a number of experiments, including a replication of K?hler's building experiment, using chimpanzees as subjects. Confirming K?hler's findings, Pavlov explained the problem-solving process in terms of unconditional reflexes and the establishment, by Pavlovian conditioning and the Thorndikian method of trial and error, of temporary neural connections identical, on the psychological level, to associations. In contrast to K?hler's "structural" explanation, Pavlov emphasized the processes of analysis and synthesis. According to Pavlov insight is achieved progressively--as the result of the organism's problem-solving behavior--contradicting K?hler's thesis of a sudden subjective reorganization of the environmental situation. Pavlov explained interspecies differences among higher organisms in terms of the range of a species behavior, with the second signal system as the main distinguishing characteristic between human and nonhuman species.     

Pavlov and psychophysiology in the 21st century]

Psychophysiology, physiological psychology (Sechenov), human physiology of higher nervous activity (Pavlov) is an interdisciplinary field, which appeared at the interface between psychology and neurosciences for exploration of the brain mechanisms of mental functions. The fundamental complementation of subjective and objective, psychological and neurobiological approaches as the facets of investigation of the basically whole process made it possible to fill with a specific content and clearly differentiate the forms of human psyche such as emotion, consciousness, personality, character, and creativity.     

Physiology of higher nervous activity and dialectic of scientific research (collective experience in solving current methodologic problems in brain research)

Structural shifts in neuroscience, the development of new investigatory approaches and appearance of new interdisciplinary problems--all this induces nowadays the followers of Pavlov and Sechenov traditions of brain and behavior study in the USSR in many aspects to see in a new way the aims and perspectives of further development of physiology of higher nervous activity. Success and difficulties of these collective methodological searches, their points of convergence and divergence with the ideas of their foreign colleagues, with modern conceptions in genetics, psychology and informatics, their point of view at the future of neuroscience--that is the object of the author's analysis.     

WLADIMIR KOWALEVSKY'S SOURCES OF IDEAS AND THEIR IMPORTANCE FOR HIS WORK AND FOR RUSSIAN EVOLUTIONARY PALAEONTOLOGY

Studies of documents and data about W.O. Kowalevsky's life and work have shed new light on his scientific background. After graduating from the School of Jurisprudence in St. Petersburg, he was first engaged in book publishing, but in 1868 began studies at the Anatomical Institute of the Medical-Surgical Academy, founded by N.I. Pirogov, a famous surgeon and anatomist. Pirogov's ideas were adopted by P.F. Lesshaft (1837–1907), later a prominent anatomist and founder of functional anatomy in Russia. Another teacher was the famous physiologist I.M. Sechenov. Only with the background of this new functional anatomy was Kowalevsky able to link up various data to form his own theories and create classical palaeontological works in the space of two and a half years (1871–1873). His influence on the development of vertebrate palaeontology has been lasting. In Russia and the Soviet Union, Kowalevsky and Lesshaft had such successors as A.P. Pavlov (1854–1929), A.A. Borissiak (1872–1944), N.N. Yakovlev (1870–1966), and many other disciples in younger generations of palaeontologists.     

Pavlov as a psychologist. A reappraisal

American psychologists are informed on Pavlov's work on conditional reflexes but not on the full development of his theory of higher nervous activity. This article shows that Pavlov's theory of higher nervous activity dealt with concepts that concerned contemporary psychologists. Pavlov used the conditioning of the salivary reflex for methodological purposes. Pavlov's theory of higher nervous activity encompassed overt behavior, neural processes, and the conscious experience. The strong Darwinian element of Pavlov's theory, with its stress on the higher organisms' adaptation, is described. With regard to learning, Pavlov, at the end of his scholarly career, proposed that although all learning involves the formation of associations, the organism's adaptation to the environment is established through conditioning, but the accumulation of knowledge is established by trial and error.     

Changes in functional characteristics of the compound eye of bees caused by mutations disturbing tryptophan metabolism

The compound eye of worker honeybees with an inborn disturbance of intermediate metabolism of tryptophan — the snow (s) and laranja (la) mutations — has increased sensitivity to light, at least 100 times higher than normal in snow and at least 10 times higher in laranja. The maxima of the spectral sensitivity curves for the whole eye in snow are shifted into the 530 nm region and in laranja to 550 nm (comparedwith 545 nm for the wild type). The electroretinograms of s andla homozygotes are unusual in form on account of the presence of a fast additional component of the receptor potential that is absent in wild-type individuals. This may be the result of immaturity of the pigment granules in the mutants, due to the inherited absence of ommochromes. Pigment granules probably play an important role not only in the formation of the light-protective screen of the ommatidium, but also in biochemical processes considered to be responsible for the electrical passivity of the photoreceptor membrane. The possibility likewise cannot be ruled out that inherited changes in the photoreceptor membranes are connected with an imbalance between derivatives of tryptophan metabolism which participate in the generation of the cell receptor potential.I. M. Sechenov Institute of Evolutionary Physiology and Biochemistry, Academy of Sciences of the USSR, Leningrad. I. P. Pavlov Institute of Physiology, Academy of Sciences of the USSR, Leningrad. Translated from Neirofiziologiya, Vol. 14, No. 1, pp. 69–75, January–February, 1982.     

Challenges of Activity Theory

One of the major distinctive features of the method of investigating nervous activity developed by I. P. Pavlov is, as we know, the synthetic formation, in the course of an experiment, of conditioned reflexes and of more complex systems of temporary connections.     

I.M. Sechenov's creative development of ideas in aviation and space medicine

Research carried outby the great Russian scholar I. M. Sechenov has significantly contributed to development of aviation physiology, medicine and psychology. His fundamental works consisted of discovery of the constancy of alveolar air composition theory, study of interactions of analyzers systems in solving the problem of human spatial orientation under flight conditions, development of a nervous theory of fatigue. Creative development of ideas by I. M. Sechenov allowed enhancing the efficiency of performing and safety of aviation and space flights.     

Motivation and reinforcement. Interdisciplinary dictionary

Pavlov (1954) considered the significance of various manifestations of the higher nervous system as a necessary preliminary condition of brain mechanisms. He wrote, "First of all it is important to comprehend psychologically and then translate into physiological language." Unfortunately, there are no conventional definitions of such notions as need, motivation, emotion, reinforcement, consciousness, will, etc. I. M. Sechenov (1952) wrote, more than a century ago, "...try to speak about one and the same subject with psychologists of different schools--each school has a new opinion; and if you start, by comparison, a conversation about sound, light, electricity with a physicist of any country--you'll receive, essentially, the same responses from all of them." There is a need to create such theoretic conceptions which would be initially of an interdisciplinary character and would be useful not only in one, but in a number of special fields of science, such as psychology, physiology, and sociology. In this article the author suggests a brief dictionary of terms, based on the need-informational approach to the study of the psyche and behavior. These were created over the last 25 years (Simonov 1986).     

Effects of calcium and potassium channel blockers on changes in transepithelial potential and spike responses in Lorenzi ampullary electroreceptors in Raja clavata

The effects of TEA, 4-AP, Co⁺⁺, Cd⁺⁺, Cs⁺, EDTA, and verapamil on the sensory epithelium of ampullae of Lorenzini were studied inRaja clavata (Black Sea skate). During voltage clamping, transepithelial application of TEA to the basal surface caused oscillations in transepithelial potentials in response to presentation of an excitatory stimulus, which had been suppressed by Co⁺⁺, Cd⁺⁺, and EDTA. Application of Cs⁺ was followed by complete or partial suppression of spike response adaptation. When applied to the apical epithelial surface, TEA produced an increase in spike response to stimulation and highly accelerated adaption. No substantial changes took place after apical application of Co⁺⁺, Cd⁺⁺, and verapamil. The mechanisms of these phenomena are discussed.Deceased.I. P. Pavlov Institute of Physiology, Academy of Sciences of the USSR, Leningrad. I. M. Sechenov Institute of Evolutionary Physiology and Biochemistry, Academy of Sciences of the USSR, Leningrad. Translated from Neirofiziologiya, Vol. 17, No. 5, pp. 652–659, September–October, 1985.     

Individual strategies of human adaptation under extreme conditions

Starting from the investigations of Sechenov, Pavlov, and Uchtomsky, the Russian psychophysiological school has been considering adaptation in connection with the biological and social origin of the person (human as a rational being) as an integrated, coordinated, and self-controlled system. On the basis of the problem of man and the environment, Medvedev added to the theory of human adaptation the activity paradigm that enables us to uncover the distinctive features of occupational activities under various environment conditions. The theoretical and practical investigations based on the activity methodology presented the opportunity to find new principles of interaction between man and the environment and of the strategy of adaptive behavior. From the investigations one could see that the main characteristic of the human-environment interaction is that the active factor is the human who could simulate different adaptation strategies.     

Unit responses of the inferior colliculi to changes in the intensity of an amplitude-modulated signal

Unit responses of the inferior colliculi of anesthetized rats to amplitude-modulated sounds during a change in the carrier intensity were investigated. The following unit response characteristics were assessed: the number of spikes in the response, the range of reproduction of the modulation frequency, the response duration, and the pattern of the spike response relative to the envelope of the amplitude-modulated stimulus. The following parameters of the stimulus were varied: carrier intensity (usually of optimal frequency or noise), frequency of modulation (from 2 to 100 Hz), and carrier frequency. With a decrease in the intensity of the carrier in the case of monotonic neurons, and also with an increase or decrease in the intensity of the carrier relative to its optimal level in nonmonotonic neurons, the following changes in the discharge were regularly observed: the number of spikes in the response and its duration were reduced down to the appearance of only one initial response, the range of reproduction of the rhythm of modulation was narrowed, and the response pattern was sharply modified.I. M. Sechenov Institute of Evolutionary Physiology and Biochemistry, Academy of Sciences of the USSR. I. P. Pavlov Institute of Physiology, Academy of Sciences of the USSR, Leningrad. Translated from Neirofiziologiya, Vol. 5, No. 4, pp. 355–366, July–August, 1973.     

An historical-physiological analysis of the discussion between I. P. Pavlov and V. M. Bekhterev on the problems of localizing functions in the cerebral cortex

This article is the first of the domestic publications on physiology and medical history, which highlights the discussion between I. P. Pavlov and V. M. Bekhterev on the issue of localization of functions in human cerebral cortex: it provides information of the visit by I. P. Pavlov to the clinic of V. M. Bekhterev; it discusses the role of V. M. Bekhrerev's students who described the cortex zones of tonotopics, gustation, regulation of salivation and stomach secretion, which I. P. Pavlov denied. Unlike articles on factography and history of physiology, which in various ways praise the scientists, this article is based of the modern approaches of medical history and scientific knowledge, in particular, it provides a retrospective of the major facts of the discussion.     

The enzyme that synthesizes tetrahydrobiopterin from 6-pyruvoyl-tetrahydropterin in the lemon mutant silkworm consists of two carbonyl reductases

Tetrahydrobiopterin plays an important role in the biosynthesis of certain neurotransmitters. Using DEAE-Sepharose FF column chromatography, we separated the enzyme that synthesizes tetrahydrobiopterin from 6-pyruvoyl-tetrahydropterin [which is different from sepiapterin reductase (EC 1.1.1.153)] in the lemon mutant of the silkworm Bombyx mori into two fractions, which were named carbonyl reductase I (CR I) and carbonyl reductase II (CR II). The CR I enzyme converted 6-pyruvoyl-tetrahydropterin to 6-lactoyl-tetrahydropterin, while CR II converted 6-pyruvoyl-tetrahydropterin to 1'-hydroxy-2'-oxopropyl-tetrahydropterin, both reactions occurring only in the presence of NADPH. Neither of the two carbonyl reductases alone was able to catalyze the conversion of 6-pyruvoyl-tetrahydropterin to tetrahydrobiopterin in the presence of NADPH. However, when CR I was mixed with CR II in the reaction mixture, 6-pyruvoyl-tetrahydropterin was reduced to tetrahydrobiopterin in the presence of NADPH. Moreover, CR I catalyzed the formation of tetrahydrobiopterin from 1'-hydroxy-2'-oxopropyl-tetrahydropterin, while CR II converted 6-lactoyl-tetrahydropterin to tetrahydrobiopterin, both reactions occurring only in the presence of NADPH. Our results suggest that there are two potential routes for formation of tetrahydrobiopterin from 6-pyruvoyl-tetrahydropterin in the lemon mutant silkworm. In the first route, 1'-hydroxy-2'-oxopropyl-tetrahydropterin is formed from 6-pyruvoyl-tetrahydropterin by CR II and then reduced to tetrahydrobiopterin by CR I, both reactions occurring only in the presence of NADPH. In the other route, 6-pyruvoyl-tetrahydropterin is reduced to 6-lactoyl-tetrahydropterin by CR I and then converted to tetrahydrobiopterin by CR II, both reactions occurring only in the presence of NADPH.     

Cutaneous mechanism of electroreceptor temperature sensitivity of the ampullae of Lorenzini

The potential difference on the receptor epithelium of the ampullae of Lorenzini and on the skin and also spike discharges of single electroreceptor nerve fibers in response to temperature stimulation of the region of the pores of the ampullae were studied in the Black Sea skateRaja clavata. Heating the skin in the region of the pore led to the appearance of a positive potential on the skin and on the epithelium of the ampulla, and to inhibition of spike activity. The time course of the change in potential reflected the course of change of temperature; the temperature coefficient was 100–150 µV/°C. Cooling the skin was accompanied by a negative deviation of potential on the skin and in the ampullary canal and by excitation of spike activity. During cooling the temperature coefficient was 30–50 µV/°C. It is concluded that spike activity of electroreceptors reflects changes in potential on the skin due to changes in temperature. The mechanism and biological significance of the phenomena discovered are discussed.I. P. Pavlov Institute of Physiology, Academy of Sciences of the USSR, Leningrad. I. M. Sechenov Institute of Evolutionary Physiology and Biochemistry, Academy of Sciences of the USSR, Leningrad. Translated from Neirofiziologiya, Vol. 13, No. 3, pp. 307–314, May–June, 1981.     

I P Pavlov principles of the higher nervous activity--a reliable basis for modern cognitive physiology

The paper shows that formulated by I. P. Pavlov principles of higher nervous activity are quite fruitful even today in investigations into the problems associated with contemporary new physiological trends as, for instance, cognitive processes. Special attention is paid to study of the principles of neurophysiological organisation of the mechanisms carrying out analysing and synthesising activities. I. P. Pavlov was the first to indicate the important role of frontal cortex in these processes.     

Deoxyribonuclease I sensitivity of the ovomucoid-ovoinhibitor gene complex in oviduct nuclei and relative location of CR1 repetitive sequences

The location of CR1 middle repetitive sequences within or near the boundaries of the ovalbumin DNase I sensitive domain has suggested that CR1 sequences may play a role in defining transition regions of DNase I sensitivity in hen oviduct nuclei. We have examined this apparent relationship of CR1 sequences and transitions of chromatin structure by determining the DNase I sensitivity in oviduct nuclei of a 47-kilobase region that contains five CR1 sequences and the transcribed ovomucoid and ovoinhibitor genes. We find that three of the CR1 sequences occur within a broad transition region of decreasing DNase I sensitivity downstream of the ovomucoid gene. Another CR1 is in a region of decreased DNase I sensitivity within the ovoinhibitor gene. The fifth CR1 sequence is in a DNase I sensitive region between the two genes but which is less sensitive to DNase I digestion than the region immediately upstream from the ovomucoid gene. Thus, the CR1 sequences occur within regions of reduced relative DNase I sensitivity, suggesting that CR1s could facilitate the formation of a chromatin conformation that is less sensitive to DNase I digestion. Unexpectedly, the noncoding strand of sequences within and immediately adjacent to the 5' end of the actively transcribed ovomucoid and ovalbumin genes was less sensitive to DNase I digestion than their respective coding strands.