Activation of the trigeminal medullary dorsal horn during voluntary diving in rats

Fos immunohistochemistry was used to indicate whether activation of trigeminal neurons occurs in voluntarily diving rats. In rats trained to dive underwater, significant increases in Fos labeling were found within the ventral superficial MDH and paratrigeminal nucleus, 100-150 microm caudal to the obex compared to control rats. The conclusion is that the ventral superficial MDH is the initial brainstem afferent relay of diving response in voluntarily diving rats.