Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 13, 2026

Combining Multiple Data Acquisition Systems to Study Corticospinal Output and Multi-segment Biomechanics
Published on: January 9, 2016
Bilateral spike-triggered average effects in arm and shoulder muscles from the monkey pontomedullary reticular
Adam G Davidson1, Marc H Schieber, John A Buford
1Neuroscience Graduate Studies Program, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio 43210, USA. adam_davidson@urmc.rochester.edu
Abstract:
Pontomedullary reticular formation (PMRF) neurons (309) were recorded simultaneously with electromyographic activity from arm and shoulder muscles in four monkeys performing arm-reaching tasks. Spike-triggered averages (SpikeTAs) were compiled for 292 neurons (3836 neuron-muscle pairs). Fourteen PMRF neurons located in a region ventral to the abducens nucleus produced 42 significant SpikeTA effects in arm and shoulder muscles. Of these 14 PMRF neurons, nine produced SpikeTA effects bilaterally. Overall, PMRF neurons facilitated ipsilateral flexors and contralateral extensors, while suppressing ipsilateral extensors and contralateral flexors. Spike- and stimulus-triggered averaging effects obtained from the same recording site were similar. These findings indicate that single PMRF neurons can directly influence movements of both upper limbs.
More Related Videos
07:30The Muscle Cuff Regenerative Peripheral Nerve Interface for the Amplification of Intact Peripheral Nerve Signals
Published on: January 13, 2022
11:06Bilateral Assessment of the Corticospinal Pathways of the Ankle Muscles Using Navigated Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation
Published on: February 19, 2019
Related Concept Videos
Somatic Spinal Reflexes
One of the most well-known somatic spinal reflexes is the stretch reflex, which is activated by the sudden stretching of a muscle. This reflex involves the activation of specialized sensory receptors called muscle spindles, which are located in the muscle tissue and detect changes in the length and speed of muscle contractions. When a muscle is suddenly...
Motor Unit Stimulation
The latent period of contraction marks the onset of excitation-contraction coupling, when the action potential propagates across the sarcolemma, preparing the muscle fibers for contraction. As the fibers enter the contraction phase, the...
Muscle Stimulation Frequency
Wave summation
At low firing rates, motor neurons induce individual twitch contractions in muscle fibers. These twitches...