The vestibular nuclei of the cat receive a primary afferent projection from receptors in extraocular muscles

Abstract

The vestibular nuclei of adult cat were injected with retrogradely transported tracers, WGA-HRP or fluorescent Diamidino-Yellow. Labelled cells were found in the caudal half of the ipsilateral mesencephalic trigeminal nucleus, in the area where ganglionic cells of the sensory receptors in the extraocular muscles have previously been described. Double labelling experiments were carried out with Diamidino Yellow injected in vestibular nuclei and Fast Blue in extraocular muscles. Some cells in the mesencephalic trigeminal nucleus were found to contain both tracers, providing evidence that vestibular neurons do receive direct afferent signals from extraocular muscles. Therefore, this anatomical demonstration suggests a direct feed-back control between the extraocular muscle receptors and the vestibular nuclei.