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The temporal relationship between non‐respiratory burst activity of expiratory laryngeal motoneurons and phrenic apnoea during stimulation of the superior laryngeal nerve in rat
Author(s) -
Sun QiJian,
Bautista Tara G.,
Berkowitz Robert G.,
Zhao WenJing,
Pilowsky Paul M.
Publication year - 2011
Publication title -
the journal of physiology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.802
H-Index - 240
eISSN - 1469-7793
pISSN - 0022-3751
DOI - 10.1113/jphysiol.2010.203794
Subject(s) - superior laryngeal nerve , medicine , stimulation , phrenic nerve , nucleus ambiguus , anesthesia , reflex , decerebration , respiratory system , respiratory center , recurrent laryngeal nerve , medulla oblongata , anatomy , central nervous system , thyroid
Non‐technical summary Nerve fibres in the larynx detect foreign substances and elicit a stereotypical airway protective response that can be simulated by electrical stimulation of the superior laryngeal nerve (SLN). In humans the response includes cough, swallowing and a cessation of breathing (apnoea). It is still unknown precisely how the central nervous system coordinates swallowing and breathing, and at which point the two vital systems converge and diverge in the brain. Here we report a temporal, sequential relationship between excitation of expiratory laryngeal motoneurons that close the larynx during swallowing, and inhibition of breathing, during stimulation of the SLN in rat. The two phenomena can be dissociated by inactivating different brain areas. This work therefore has implications for diseases such as sudden infant death syndrome and Parkinson's disease, in which incoordination of breathing and protective behaviours may result in aspiration of irritants and subsequent death or aspiration pneumonia.