Publication Date
2015
Document Type
Thesis
Committee Members
Timothy Cope (Committee Member), Robert Fyffe (Other), Larry Ream (Committee Member)
Degree Name
Master of Science (MS)
Abstract
Until now, observations regarding the central morphology and organization of Ia, group II and Ib Golgi tendon organ afferents have been confined to the cat model. As the use of rodents in the study of the development and organization of segmental spinal cord circuitry increases, a complete account of the peripheral encoding and central connectivity of rodent muscle proprioceptors is necessary. The data presented in this study establish the central morphology and spatial distribution of 12 (4 of each class) functionally phenotyped muscle proprioceptor afferents in the rat by intracellular labeling with Neurobiotin. Each afferent type showed a characteristic central morphology and trajectory that was consistent with observations in the cat. However, variability between the two mammalian models was observed in the average distribution of synaptic contacts within each target lamina. Overall, our data suggests that the findings previously established in the cat are generalizable to other mammalian species.
Page Count
46
Department or Program
Department of Neuroscience, Cell Biology & Physiology
Year Degree Awarded
2015
Copyright
Copyright 2015, all rights reserved. This open access ETD is published by Wright State University and OhioLINK.
