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Coordination of eye and head components of movements evoked by stimulation of the paramedian pontine reticular formation

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Abstract

Constant frequency microstimulation of the paramedian pontine reticular formation (PPRF) in head-restrained monkeys evokes a constant velocity eye movement. Since the PPRF receives significant projections from structures that control coordinated eye-head movements, we asked whether stimulation of the pontine reticular formation in the head-unrestrained animal generates a combined eye-head movement or only an eye movement. Microstimulation of most sites yielded a constant-velocity gaze shift executed as a coordinated eye-head movement, although eye-only movements were evoked from some sites. The eye and head contributions to the stimulation-evoked movements varied across stimulation sites and were drastically different from the lawful relationship observed for visually-guided gaze shifts. These results indicate that the microstimulation activated elements that issued movement commands to the extraocular and, for most sites, neck motoneurons. In addition, the stimulation-evoked changes in gaze were similar in the head-restrained and head-unrestrained conditions despite the assortment of eye and head contributions, suggesting that the vestibulo-ocular reflex (VOR) gain must be near unity during the coordinated eye-head movements evoked by stimulation of the PPRF. These findings contrast the attenuation of VOR gain associated with visually-guided gaze shifts and suggest that the vestibulo-ocular pathway processes volitional and PPRF stimulation-evoked gaze shifts differently.

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Acknowledgments

We thank Dennis Murray for surgical assistance and animal care, and Kathy Pearson for software development. The study was funded by NIH grants EY001189, EY007001, EY007009 and EY015485.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Neuroscience, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, 77030, USA

    Neeraj J. Gandhi, Ellen J. Barton & David L. Sparks

  2. Departments of Otolaryngology, Bioengineering, and Neuroscience, Center for the Neural Basis of Cognition, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, 15213, USA

    Neeraj J. Gandhi

  3. Department of Otolaryngology, Eye and Ear Institute, Room 108, University of Pittsburgh, 203 Lothrop Street, Pittsburgh, PA, 15213, USA

    Neeraj J. Gandhi

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  1. Neeraj J. Gandhi
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Correspondence to Neeraj J. Gandhi.

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Gandhi, N.J., Barton, E.J. & Sparks, D.L. Coordination of eye and head components of movements evoked by stimulation of the paramedian pontine reticular formation. Exp Brain Res 189, 35–47 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00221-008-1401-1

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