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Updated: Jun 15, 2026

Electrophysiology on Isolated Brainstem-spinal Cord Preparations from Newborn Rodents Allows Neural Respiratory Network Output Recording
Published on: November 19, 2015
Evidence for a distributed respiratory rhythm generating network in the goldfish (Carsssius auratus)
Maryana Duchcherer1, Andrew Kottick, R J A Wilson
1Department of Physiology and Biophysics, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada. mduchche@ucalgary.ca
Abstract:
Central pattern generators located in the brainstem regulate ventilatory behaviors in vertebrates. The development of the isolated brainstem preparation has allowed these neural networks to be characterized in a number of aquatic species. The aim of this study was to explore the architecture of the respiratory rhythm-generating site in the goldfish (Carassius auratus) and to determine the utility of a newly developed isolated brainstem preparation, the Sheep Dip. Here we provide evidence for a distributed organization of respiratory rhythm generating neurons along the rostrocaudal axis of the goldfish brainstem and outline the advantages of the Sheep Dip as a tool used to survey neural networks.
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