AJP - Regulatory, Integrative and Comparative Physiology, Vol 239, Issue 5 407-R414, Copyright © 1980 by American Physiological Society
Interaction between primary afferent nerves in the elicitation of reflex swallowing
A. Weerasuriya, D. Bieger and C. H. Hockman
In adult cats anesthetized with urethan, a number of observations were made
that support the concept that some control over the rate of reflexly
induced swallowing occurs in the intermediate network at the level of the
nucleus of the solitary tract. It was shown that different nerves, e.g.,
the two superior laryngeal and glossopharyngeal nerves, when activated in
sequence interact in such a manner as to facilitate reflex swallowing. It
was also shown that the decrement in the reflex response observed to
continuous stimulation of a primary afferent nerve, e.g., one superior
laryngeal, can be reversed by switching the stimulation to another nerve
either on the same or contralateral side. And finally, following discrete
medullary lesions, it was observed that that portion of the nucleus of the
solitary tract located 2 mm or more rostral to the rostralmost point of the
dorsal medial sulcus appears to contain an integral component of the
intermediate network that governs reflexly induced swallowing, whereas
lesions restricted to the ventrolateral portion of the nucleus of the
solitary tract have no effect on the reflex response.
