Noxious heat-evoked Fos-like immunoreactivity in the rat medulla, with emphasis on the catecholamine cell groups

The objectives of the present study were 1) to utilize Fos immunohistochemistry as a marker for neuronal activity in order to examine the population of neurons in the medulla that is engaged by activation of nociceptive peripheral afferents and 2) to determine whether catecholamine-containing neurons in the medulla also express noxious heat-evoked Fos-like immunoreactivity. Noxious heating of the hindpaw evoked specific patterns of Fos-like immunoreactivity in the medulla in regions known to be involved in both nociceptive processing and cardiovascular regulation. Noxious heating of the hindpaw significantly increased the mean number of neurons expressing Fos-like immunoreactivity in the contralateral ventrolateral medulla. Increased numbers of Fos-positive neurons also were observed in both the ipsilateral and the contralateral A1 catecholamine cell groups. Similarly, in the contralateral medullary dorsal reticular fields, noxious heating of the hindpaw significantly increased the mean number of neurons expressing Fos-like immunoreactivity. In contrast, in the paramedian reticular nucleus, noxious heating of the hindpaw resulted in a significant decrease in the mean number of neurons expressing Fos-like immunoreactivity. No significant differences in the mean numbers of neurons expressing Fos-like immunoreactivity were noted in the A2, C1, or C2/C3 medullary catecholamine cell groups. These results suggest that noxious stimuli affect pools of neurons in the medulla with multiple physiological functions.