Recoverable and nonrecoverable deficits in conditioned responses after cerebellar cortical lesions

Abstract

This study reexamined the effects of unilateral damage to cerebellar hemispheral lobule VI on the rabbit's conditioned nictitating membrane (NM) response. Extensive unilateral removal of hemispheral lobule VI in 11 rabbits impaired ipsilateral conditioned responses as reflected by reductions of 52% in mean frequency and 53% in mean amplitude during test trials on the first postoperative session. The decreases in the amplitude and frequency of conditioned responses were highly correlated (r = 0.82). The frequency of conditioned responses recovered to control levels but their amplitudes remained reduced such that the correlation between these two measures of responding was no longer significant by the 12th postoperative conditioning session. The decrease in the amplitude of conditioned responses was not accompanied by changes in onset latency or rise time. There was no significant impairment of conditioned responses in surgical controls and animals with only partial damage to hemispheral lobule VI. It was concluded that hemispheral lobule VI plays an important role in the regulation of motor centers in the brainstem so as to facilitate the initiation and optimum execution of the conditioned NM reflex. This cortical regulation of the conditioned NM response may contain learned elements; however, these cannot be resolved with lesion methods, nor has their existence been proven in this or other lesion studies. Nevertheless, the results of this study do demonstrate that the cerebellar cortex cannot be considered as the single locus necessary for NM conditioning.