Effect of noxious tail pinch on the discharge rate of mesocortical and mesolimbic dopamine neurons: selective activation of the mesocortical system

The effects of noxious tail pinch on the activity of mesocortical and mesolimbic dopamine (DA) neurons located in the ventromedial mesencephalic tegmentum were analyzed in ketamine-anesthetized rats. The great majority of mesocortical DA neurons responded to tail pinch, either by an excitation (65%), or by an inhibition (25%). In contrast, most DA neurons projecting either to the nucleus accumbens or the septum remained unaffected. These results demonstrate that noxious tail pinch selectively influences the firing rate of mesocortical DA neurons.

[1]  C. D. Stern,et al.  Handbook of Chemical Neuroanatomy Methods in Chemical Neuroanatomy. Edited by A. Bjorklund and T. Hokfelt. Elsevier, Amsterdam, 1983. Cloth bound, 548 pp. UK £140. (Volume 1 in the series). , 1986, Neurochemistry International.

[2]  A. Grace,et al.  Nigral dopamine neurons: intracellular recording and identification with L-dopa injection and histofluorescence. , 1980, Science.

[3]  A. Albanese,et al.  Organization of the ascending projections from the ventral tegmental area: A multiple fluorescent retrograde tracer study in the rat , 1983, The Journal of comparative neurology.

[4]  G. Mogenson,et al.  Effects of peripheral stimulation on the activity of neurons in the ventral tegmental area, substantia nigra and midbrain reticular formation of rats , 1982, Brain Research Bulletin.

[5]  J. Deniau,et al.  Electrophysiological identification of mesencephalic ventromedial tegmental (VMT) neurons projecting to the frontal cortex, septum and nucleus accumbens , 1980, Brain Research.

[6]  Louis A. Chiodo,et al.  Sensory stimuli alter discharge rate of dopamine (DA) neurons: evidence for two functional types of DA cells in the substantia nigra , 1980, Brain Research.

[7]  J. Deniau,et al.  Electrophysiological evidence for non-dopaminergic mesocortical and mesolimbic neurons in the rat , 1980, Brain Research.

[8]  D. German,et al.  Electrophysiological examination of the ventral tegmental (A10) area in the rat , 1980, Brain Research.

[9]  J. Glowinski,et al.  Opposite changes in dopamine utilization in the nucleus accumbens and the frontal cortex after electrolytic lesion of the median raphe in the rat , 1981, Brain Research.

[10]  J. Glowinski,et al.  Differential effects of ascending neurons containing dopamine and noradrenaline in the control of spontaneous activity and of evoked responses in the rat prefrontal cortex , 1988, Neuroscience.

[11]  G. Mogenson,et al.  Electrophysiological studies of neurons in the ventral tegmental area of tsai , 1980, Brain Research.

[12]  A. Grace,et al.  Intracellular and extracellular electrophysiology of nigral dopaminergic neurons—1. Identification and characterization , 1983, Neuroscience.

[13]  L. Swanson,et al.  The projections of the ventral tegmental area and adjacent regions: A combined fluorescent retrograde tracer and immunofluorescence study in the rat , 1982, Brain Research Bulletin.

[14]  M. Moal,et al.  Peripheral auditory input to the midbrain limbic area and related structures , 1979, Brain Research.

[15]  J. Glowinski,et al.  Reduction of dopamine utilization in the prefrontal cortex but not in the nucleus accumbens after selective destruction of noradrenergic fibers innervating the ventral tegmental area in the rat , 1982, Brain Research.

[16]  R. Roth,et al.  Substance K and substance P differentially modulate mesolimbic and mesocortical systems , 1985, Peptides.

[17]  S. Barasi.  Responses of substantia nigra neurones to noxious stimulation , 1979, Brain Research.

[18]  J. H. Fallon,et al.  Substantia nigra and ventral tegmental area projections to cortex: Topography and collateralization , 1984, Neuroscience.

[19]  Rex Y. Wang.  Dopaminergic neurons in the rat ventral tegmental area. I. Identification and characterization , 1981, Brain Research Reviews.

[20]  W. Schultz,et al.  Responses of nigrostriatal dopamine neurons to high-intensity somatosensory stimulation in the anesthetized monkey. , 1987, Journal of neurophysiology.

[21]  J. Glowinski,et al.  Selective activation of the mesocortico-frontal dopaminergic neurons induced by lesion of the habenula in the rat , 1980, Brain Research.

[22]  J. Glowinski,et al.  Selective activation of the mesocortical DA system by stress , 1976, Nature.

[23]  L. Chiodo,et al.  Reciprocal influences of activating and immobilizing stimuli on the activity of nigrostriatal dopamine neurons , 1979, Brain Research.

[24]  W. Zeman.  The Rat Drain. A Stereotaxic Atlas , 1964 .