Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 17, 2026
06:18
Assessing the Autonomic and Behavioral Effects of Passive Motion in Rats using Elevator Vertical Motion and Ferris-Wheel Rotation
Published on: February 7, 2020
Labyrinthine lesions and motion sickness susceptibility
Mingjia Dai1, Theodore Raphan, Bernard Cohen
1Department of Neurology, Mount Sinai School of Medicine, New York, NY 10029-6574, USA. mingjia.dai@mssm.edu
Experimental Brain Research
|January 27, 2007
Summary
Motion sickness arises from the slow pathway of the angular vestibulo-ocular reflex (aVOR), known as velocity storage. Reducing the aVOR time constant can decrease susceptibility to motion sickness.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Vestibular System Physiology
- Human Motion Perception
Background:
- The angular vestibulo-ocular reflex (aVOR) comprises fast and slow pathways.
- The slow pathway, or velocity storage, influences low-frequency responses and gravity orientation.
- Motion sickness is hypothesized to originate from velocity storage misalignment with eye velocity.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the role of velocity storage in motion sickness.
- To test if reduced vestibular time constants correlate with lower motion sickness susceptibility.
Main Methods:
- Studied bilateral labyrinthine-defective subjects with short time constants.
- Assessed motion sickness susceptibility via head movements during rotation with head-roll.
- Measured aVOR time constants and gains from rotational responses.
Main Results:
- Labyrinthine-defective subjects showed significantly lower motion sickness susceptibility (more head movements) than normals.
- Habituation in normal subjects reduced time constants and motion sickness.
- A strong inverse relationship was found between vestibular time constants and motion sickness susceptibility.
Conclusions:
- Findings support the hypothesis that motion sickness is generated via the velocity storage pathway.
- Motion sickness susceptibility is inversely related to the aVOR time constant.
- Reducing the aVOR time constant may be a strategy to mitigate motion sickness.
Related Concept Videos
01:15Equilibrium and Balance
The inner ear assumes dual functionalities of auditory perception and equilibrium maintenance. The vestibule is the organ responsible for balance. This organ contains mechanoreceptors, specifically hair cells, endowed with stereocilia, which aid in deciphering information regarding the position and motion of our heads. Two intrinsic components, the utricle and saccule, help perceive head position, while the semicircular canals track head movement. Neurological messages initiated in the...
01:27Restless Leg Syndrome and Night Terrors
Restless Leg Syndrome (RLS), also known as Willis-Ekbom disease, is a neurological disorder characterized by an uncontrollable urge to move the legs due to uncomfortable sensations. These sensations typically occur during periods of rest or inactivity, particularly when lying down or sitting, and can severely disrupt sleep.
The exact cause of RLS is not fully understood, but it is believed to involve dopamine, a neurotransmitter that helps regulate muscle movement. Imbalances in dopamine levels...
The exact cause of RLS is not fully understood, but it is believed to involve dopamine, a neurotransmitter that helps regulate muscle movement. Imbalances in dopamine levels...
01:22Pathophysiology of Vomiting
Vomiting is a complex physiological response to expel harmful or irritating substances from the body. It's a defensive mechanism triggered by stimuli like poisons, microbial toxins, cytotoxic drugs, and mechanical abdominal distension. The process is centrally coordinated by the vomiting (or emetic) center located in the medulla of the brainstem. This area, rich in muscarinic M1, histamine H1, neurokinin 1 (NK1), and serotonin 5-HT3 receptors, coordinates the act of vomiting through interaction...
01:28Major Somatic Sensory Pathways
Sensory impulses related to touch, pressure, vibration, and proprioception from various body parts, such as the limbs, trunk, neck, and posterior head, travel to the cerebral cortex through the posterior column-medial lemniscus pathway. The pathway’s name derives from the two white-matter tracts that convey the impulses: the spinal cord's posterior column and the brainstem's medial lemniscus. First-order sensory neurons extend their axons into the spinal cord, forming the posterior columns...
01:28Drugs Affecting GI Tract Motility: Dopamine Receptor Antagonists
Prokinetic agents are specialized medications that stimulate gastrointestinal (GI) motility, promoting food movement through the GI tract. Dopamine, an inhibitory neurotransmitter, plays a significant role in this process, reducing GI motility and indirectly controlling the speed of digestion. Dopamine receptor antagonists, such as metoclopramide and domperidone, offer a unique advantage as prokinetic agents. By blocking the dopamine receptors, these drugs increase GI motility, improving food...
01:29The Vestibular System
The vestibular system is a set of inner ear structures that provide a sense of balance and spatial orientation. This system is comprised of structures within the labyrinth of the inner ear, including the cochlea and two otolith organs—the utricle and saccule. The labyrinth also contains three semicircular canals—superior, posterior, and horizontal—that are oriented on different planes.