RT Journal Article
SR Electronic
T1 A Specific Inhibitory Pathway between Substantia Gelatinosa Neurons Receiving Direct C-Fiber Input
JF The Journal of Neuroscience
JO J. Neurosci.
FD Society for Neuroscience
SP 8752
OP 8758
DO 10.1523/JNEUROSCI.23-25-08752.2003
VO 23
IS 25
A1 Lu, Yan
A1 Perl, Edward R.
YR 2003
UL http://www.jneurosci.org/content/23/25/8752.abstract
AB The spinal substantia gelatinosa (SG) is a major termination region for unmyelinated (C) primary afferent fibers; however, how the input it receives from these sensory fibers is processed by SG neurons remains primarily a matter of conjecture. To gain insight on connections and functional interactions between intrinsic SG neurons, simultaneous tight-seal, whole-cell recordings were made from pairs of neurons in rat spinal cord slices to examine whether impulses in one cell generated synaptic activity in the other. Most SG neuron pairs sampled lacked synaptic interaction. Those showing a linkage included a recurring pattern consisting of a monosynaptic, bicuculline-sensitive inhibitory connection from an islet cell to a transient central neuron, each of which received direct excitatory input from different afferent C-fibers. This newly defined inhibitory circuit is postulated to represent a SG neural module by which a nociceptive C-fiber input to transient central cells is modified by other C-fiber messages.