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Some Effects of Deafferentation on Neurons of the Cat Spinal Cord
John D. Loeser, MD;
Arthur A. Ward, Jr., MD
Arch Neurol. 1967;17(6):629-636.
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| Since this article does not have an abstract, we have provided the first 150 words of the full text PDF and any section headings. |
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THE firing characteristics of individual neurons of the mammalian nervous system have been studied in varying structures with a wide range of stimuli, anesthetics, and surgical procedures, while attention has not been focused upon comparing spontaneous activity in normal and abnormal states. Previous studies of activity in the cortical epileptic focus by Ward et al1-4 have elucidated two attributes of "epileptic" neurons: autonomous high-frequency bursts and loss of synaptic drive which has been attributed to the absence of dendritic spines.5 On the basis of these investigations, it has been postulated that the "epileptic" cell is in a state of partial functional deafferentation and that the abnormal firing pattern is a consequence of this deafferentation. Studies utilizing cortical neurons cannot divorce afferent from efferent activity because of the complex geometry of the cortical feltwork but the anatomy of the spinal cord permits deafferentation without manipulation of efferent systems.
. . . [Full Text PDF of this Article]
Author Affiliations
Seattle
From the Department of Neurological Surgery, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle. Dr. Loeser's present address is Department of Neurosurgery, Veterans Administration Hospital, Long Beach, Calif.
Footnotes
Submitted for publication May 17, 1967; accepted July 24.
Read before the 92nd annual meeting of the American Neurological Association, Atlantic City, NJ, June 12-14, 1967.
Reprint requests to Department of Neurological Surgery, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle 98105 (Dr. Ward).
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