An electrophysiological study of the medial prefrontal cortical projection to the nucleus of the solitary tract in rat

Abstract

The medial prefrontal cortex (MPFC) has been described as a "visceromotor" cortical area, since autonomic effects such as depressor responses may be elicited from this area. The central circuitry which mediates these depressor responses may include a projection from the MPFC to the nucleus of the solitary tract (NTS). Neurones were recorded extracellularly in the MPFC and were tested for antidromic (AD) activation from the NTS. These were all tested for (1) constant spike latency, (2) ability to follow high-frequency stimulation to more than 200 Hz, and (3) where possible, collision of stimulation-evoked spike with spontaneous spike or spikes evoked by iontophoretic application of glutamate...