Group I fibers: pressor reflex and cardiac activity

Experiments were performed on cats to see whether stimulation of group I afferent fibers from gastrocnemius-soleus muscles induced changes in cardiac activity, in addition to the increase in systemic arterial pressure already established. The results show that the increase in arterial pressure is accompanied by an increase in systolic left ventricular pressure, without any significant changes in cardiac inotropism and chronotropism. It is concluded that the cardiac innervation is not an important efferent pathway of the pressor reflex evoked by stimulating group I afferent fibers, and that the reflex increase in arterial pressure depends mainly on an increase in peripheral vascular resistance.