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The Journal of Neuroscience, April 9, 2008, 28(15):3976-3987; doi:10.1523/JNEUROSCI.5692-07.2008

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Behavioral/Systems/Cognitive
Prominent Role of the Spinal Central Pattern Generator in the Recovery of Locomotion after Partial Spinal Cord Injuries

Grégory Barrière, Hugues Leblond, Janyne Provencher, and Serge Rossignol

Multidisciplinary Team in Locomotor Rehabilitation of the Canadian Institutes of Health Research and Groupe de Recherche sur le Système Nerveux Central, Canada Research Chair on the Spinal Cord, Department of Physiology, University of Montreal, Montreal, Quebec, Canada H3T 1J4

Correspondence should be addressed to Dr. Serge Rossignol, Centre de Recherche en Sciences Neurologiques, Pavillon Paul G. Desmarais, 2960 Chemin de la Tour, Université de Montréal, Montréal, Québec, Canada H3T 1J4. Email: Serge.Rossignol{at}umontreal.ca

The re-expression of hindlimb locomotion after complete spinal cord injuries (SCIs) is caused by the presence of a spinal central pattern generator (CPG) for locomotion. After partial SCI, however, the role of this spinal CPG in the recovery of hindlimb locomotion in the cat remains mostly unknown. In the present work, we devised a dual-lesion paradigm to determine its possible contribution after partial SCI. After a partial section of the left thoracic segment T10 or T11, cats gradually recovered voluntary quadrupedal locomotion. Then, a complete transection was performed two to three segments more caudally (T13–L1) several weeks after the first partial lesion. Cats that received intensive treadmill training after the partial lesion expressed bilateral hindlimb locomotion within hours of the complete lesion. Untrained cats however showed asymmetrical hindlimb locomotion with the limb on the side of the partial lesion walking well before the other hindlimb. Thus, the complete spinalization revealed that the spinal CPG underwent plastic changes after the partial lesions, which were shaped by locomotor training. Over time, with further treadmill training, the asymmetry disappeared and a bilateral locomotion was reinstated. Therefore, although remnant intact descending pathways must contribute to voluntary goal-oriented locomotion after partial SCI, the recovery and re-expression of the hindlimb locomotor pattern mostly results from intrinsic changes below the lesion in the CPG and afferent inputs.

Key words: spinal cord injury; locomotion; plasticity; central pattern generator; treadmill training; cat

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Received Dec. 21, 2007; revised Feb. 18, 2008; accepted Feb. 20, 2008.

Correspondence should be addressed to Dr. Serge Rossignol, Centre de Recherche en Sciences Neurologiques, Pavillon Paul G. Desmarais, 2960 Chemin de la Tour, Université de Montréal, Montréal, Québec, Canada H3T 1J4. Email: Serge.Rossignol{at}umontreal.ca

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