ANNALS OF THE NEW YORK ACADEMY OF SCIENCES, 860: 83-93 (1998) Initiation of Locomotion in Mammals

Abstract: Several “locomotor regions” of the mammalian brain stem can be stimulated, either electrically or chemically, to induce locomotion. Active cells labeled with c‐fos within the mesencephalic locomotor region (MLR) have been found in the periaqueductal gray, the cuneiform nucleus, the pedunculopontine nucleus, and the locus coeruleus. Different subsets of these nuclei appear to be activated during locomotion produced in different behavioral contexts. The locomotor nuclei can be classified into areas associated with exploratory, appetitive, and defensive locomotion, in accordance with the proposal of Sinnamon (1993, Prog. Neurobiol. 41: 323‐344). The interpretation of lesion studies designed to reveal areas of the brain essential for locomotion must be based on knowledge of the nuclei which become active in the specific locomotor task being tested. An argument is put forward in favor of the continued use of the term “mesencephalic locomotor region.”

[1]  R. Depoortère,et al.  Aversion induced by electrical stimulation of the mesencephalic locomotor region in the intact and freely moving rat , 1990, Physiology & Behavior.

[2]  S. Brudzyński,et al.  c-Fos immunohistochemical localization of neurons in the mesencephalic locomotor region in the rat brain , 1996, Neuroscience.

[3]  A. M. Poel,et al.  Hypothalamic substrates for brain stimulation-induced patterns of locomotion and escape jumps in the rat , 1988, Brain Research.

[4]  M. Behbehani.  Functional characteristics of the midbrain periaqueductal gray , 1995, Progress in Neurobiology.

[5]  S. Grillner,et al.  Selection and initiation of motor behavior , 1997 .

[6]  R. Depoortère,et al.  Treadmill locomotion and aversive effects induced by electrical stimulation of the mesencephalic locomotor region in the rat , 1990, Brain Research Bulletin.

[7]  B. Rocha,et al.  C-fos immunoreactivity in the brain following unilateral electrical stimulation of the dorsal periaqueductal gray in freely moving rats , 1992, Brain Research.

[8]  Y. Ohta,et al.  Site-specific postural and locomotor changes evoked in awake, freely moving intact cats by stimulating the brainstem , 1989, Brain Research.

[9]  P. Whelan.  CONTROL OF LOCOMOTION IN THE DECEREBRATE CAT , 1996, Progress in Neurobiology.

[10]  L. Jordan.  Brain stem and spinal cord mechanisms for the initiation of locomotion , 1991 .

[11]  G. Mogenson,et al.  Decreases in rat locomotor activity as a result of changes in synaptic transmission to neurons within the mesencephalic locomotor region. , 1993, Canadian journal of physiology and pharmacology.

[12]  G. Mogenson,et al.  Involvement of neuronal cell bodies of the mesencephalic locomotor region in the initiation of locomotor activity of freely behaving rats , 1986, Brain Research Bulletin.

[13]  Shik Ml,et al.  Control of walking and running by means of electric stimulation of the midbrain , 1966 .

[14]  H. M. Sinnamon,et al.  Preoptic and hypothalamic neurons and the initiation of locomotion in the anesthetized rat , 1993, Progress in Neurobiology.

[15]  H. M. Sinnamon,et al.  Locomotion elicited by lateral hypothalamic stimulation in the anesthetized rat does not require the dorsal midbrain , 1987, Brain Research.

[16]  S. Grillner.  Control of Locomotion in Bipeds, Tetrapods, and Fish , 1981 .

[17]  M. Nishihara,et al.  Interaction between excitatory and inhibitory amino acids in the ventromedial nucleus of the hypothalamus in inducing hyper-running , 1993, Brain Research.

[18]  P. Winn,et al.  Is the cuneiform nucleus a critical component of the mesencephalic locomotor region? An examination of the effects of excitotoxic lesions of the cuneiform nucleus on spontaneous and nucleus accumbens induced locomotion , 1996, Brain Research Bulletin.

[19]  D. Armstrong.  Supraspinal contributions to the initiation and control of locomotion in the cat , 1986, Progress in Neurobiology.

[20]  H. M. Sinnamon,et al.  GABA injected into the anterior dorsal tegmentum (ADT) of the midbrain blocks stepping initiated by stimulation of the hypothalamus , 1997, Brain Research.

[21]  S. Mori.  Integration of posture and locomotion in acute decerebrate cats and in awake, freely moving cats , 1987, Progress in Neurobiology.

[22]  K. Takakusaki,et al.  Neuronal constituents of postural and locomotor control systems and their interactions in cats. , 1992, Brain & development.

[23]  G. Iwamoto,et al.  Identification of diencephalic and brainstem cardiorespiratory areas activated during exercise , 1996, Brain Research.

[24]  H. M. Sinnamon,et al.  Neural activity in the midbrain correlated with hindlimb extension initiated by locomotor stimulation of the hypothalamus of the anesthetized rat , 1995, Neuroscience.

[25]  J. Masdeu,et al.  Astasia and gait failure with damage of the pontomesencephalic locomotor region , 1994, Annals of neurology.

[26]  L. Jordan.  Initiation of Locomotion from the Mammalian Brainstem , 1986 .

[27]  P. Winn,et al.  The pedunculopontine tegmental nucleus: Where the striatum meets the reticular formation , 1995, Progress in Neurobiology.

[28]  F. Graeff,et al.  C-fos immunoreactivity in the brain following electrical or chemical stimulation of the medial hypothalamus of freely moving rats , 1995, Brain Research.

[29]  P. Dean,et al.  Plasticity of behavioural response to repeated injection of glutamate in cuneiform area of rat , 1988, Brain Research.