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Cited by 93Pain Mechanisms and TreatmentsNeuroscience and Neuropharmacology ResearchMotor Control and Adaptation

The periaqueductal gray in the cat projects to lamina VIII and the medial part of lamina VII throughout the length of the spinal cord.

Mouton, Leonora J., Holstege, Gert·1994·Experimental Brain Research
DOI 10.1007/bf00228745
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Abstract

The periaqueductal gray (PAG) plays an important role in analgesia as well as in motor activities, such as vocalization, cardiovascular changes, and movements of the neck, back, and hind limbs. Although the anatomical pathways for vocalization and cardiovascular control are rather well understood, this is not the case for the pathways controlling the neck, back, and hind limb movements. This led us to study the direct projections from the PAG to the spinal cord in the cat. In a retrograde tracing study horseradish peroxidase (HRP) was injected into different spinal levels, which resulted in large HRP-labeled neurons in the lateral and ventrolateral PAG and the adjacent mesencephalic tegmentum. Even after an injection in the S2 spinal segment a few of these large neurons were found in the PAG. Wheat germ agglutinin-conjugated HRP injections in the ventrolateral and lateral PAG resulted in anterogradely labeled fibers descending through the ventromedial, ventral, and lateral funiculi. These fibers terminated in lamina VIII and the medial part of lamina VII of the caudal cervical, thoracic, lumbar, and sacral spinal cord. Interneurons in these laminae have been demonstrated to project to axial and proximal muscle motoneurons. The strongest PAG-spinal projections were to the upper cervical cord, where the fibers terminated in the lateral parts of the intermediate zone (laminae V, VII, and the dorsal part of lamina VIII). These laminae contain the premotor interneurons of the neck muscles. This distribution pattern suggests that the PAG-spinal pathway is involved in the control of neck and back movements. Comparing the location of the PAG-spinal neurons with the results of stimulation experiments leads to the supposition that the PAG-spinal neurons play a role in the control of the axial musculature during threat display.

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Crossref · 10.1007/bf00228745

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  • Decreased body sway and heart rate (bradycardic effect) have been demonstrated in response to threatening stimuli (pictures of angry faces or of mutilation), social-threat stimuli, and states of anticipatory anxiety.

    “Decreased body sway and heart rate (bradycardic effect) have been demonstrated in response to threatening stimuli (pictures of angry faces or of mutilation), social-threat stimuli, and states of anticipatory anxiety.73–81”

    From Fear and the Defense Cascade (2015) · cites this paper as [76]

  • Descending projections via the ventral medulla or possibly directly to motor neurons of the ventral horn of the spinal cord mediate the immobility and loss of the righting reflex that characterize tonic immobility.

    “Further downstream, descending projections either via the ventral medulla98 or possibly directly to the motor neurons of the ventral horn of the spinal cord99 mediate the immobility and loss of the righting reflex§§§ that characterize tonic immobility.”

    From Fear and the Defense Cascade (2015) · cites this paper as [99]

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Authors
Mouton, L. J., & Holstege, G.
Affiliations
University of Groningen (NL)
ORCID
Venue
Experimental Brain Research
Publisher
Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Published
1994-09
Volume
101
Issue
2
Pages
253-264
ISSN
  • 0014-4819 (ISSN-L)
  • 1432-1106
DOI
10.1007/bf00228745
OpenAlex
W2049872402
Cited by
93
References
64
Citations by year
2026: 2 · 2025: 1 · 2024: 2 · 2023: 2 · 2022: 5 · 2021: 1 · 2020: 1 · 2019: 1 · 2018: 3 · 2017: 3 · 2016: 2 · 2015: 2 · 2014: 4 · 2013: 2 · 2012: 6
FWCI
2.71
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
closed
Licence
www.springer.com/tdm (tdm)
Locations
  • Experimental Brain Research (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • University of Groningen research database (University of Groningen / Centre for Information Technology) (publishedVersion)
  • University of Groningen research database (University of Groningen / Centre for Information Technology) (submittedVersion)
Funders
Johns Hopkins University
Topics
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Physiology › Pain Mechanisms and Treatments
  • Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cellular and Molecular Neuroscience › Neuroscience and Neuropharmacology Research
  • Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Motor Control and Adaptation
Keywords
periaqueductal gray, spinal cord projections, lamina VII, spinal interneurons, axial musculature, threat display, mesencephalic tegmentum, retrograde tracing, anterograde tracing, cats
MeSH terms
Animals, Brain Mapping, Cats, Efferent Pathways, Horseradish Peroxidase, Male, Synaptic Transmission, Neurons, Periaqueductal Gray, Spinal Cord, Tegmentum Mesencephali, Wheat Germ Agglutinins, Wheat Germ Agglutinin-Horseradish Peroxidase Conjugate

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