Gating of reflexes in ankle muscles during human stance and gait

Holding the body's centre of gravity steady represents the crucial variable for the stabilization of posture in upright stance in man. Results from two experimental approaches suggest that force-dependent receptors are required, in addition to the well-known systems involved in sway stabilization, for equilibrium control. One approach concerns bilateral leg muscle activation during stance. Unilateral or bilateral leg displacements were induced while subjects stood on a treadmill with split belts. A unilateral displacement induced a bilateral EMG response. During bilateral displacements the EMG activity was linearly summed or subtracted, depending on whether the legs were displaced in the same or opposite directions. Both legs acted in a cooperative manner: each limb affected the strength of muscle activation and the time-space behaviour of the other. This interlimb coordination is suggested to be mediated by spinal interneuronal circuits, which are themselves under supraspinal (e.g., cerebellar) control. The other approach concerns the modulation of postural reflexes under stimulated "microgravity" ir. water immersion. An approximately linear relationship was found between contact forces and impulse-directed EMG response amplitudes in the leg muscles. Out of water loading of the subjects resulted in no further increase of the response amplitude. It was concluded that the function of proprioceptive reflexes involved in the stabilization of posture depends on the presence of contact forces opposing gravity. Extensor load receptors are thought to signal changes of the projection of body's centre of mass with respect to the feet. The interaction of the afferent input from these receptors with the other systems involved in postural control is not yet fully understood.