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Motor strategies used by rats spinalized at birth to maintain stance in response to imposed perturbations
Journal article   Open access   Peer reviewed

Motor strategies used by rats spinalized at birth to maintain stance in response to imposed perturbations

Simon F Giszter, Michelle R Davies and Virginia Graziani
Journal of neurophysiology, v 97(4), pp 2663-2675
Apr 2007
PMID: 17287444
url
https://doi.org/10.1152/jn.00308.2006View
Published, Version of Record (VoR) Open

Abstract

Some rats spinalized P1/P2 achieve autonomous weight supported locomotion and quiet stance as adults. We used force platforms and robot applied perturbations to test such spinalized rats (n=6) which exhibited both weight supporting locomotion and stance, and also normal rats (n=8). Ground reaction forces in individual limbs, and the animals’ center of pressure were examined. In normal rats, both forelimbs and hindlimbs participated actively to control horizontal components of ground reaction forces. Rostral perturbations increased forelimb ground reaction forces, and caudal perturbations increased hindlimb ground reaction forces. Operate rats carried 60% body weight on the forelimbs and had a more rostral center of pressure placement. Normal rats pattern was to carry significantly more weight on the hindlimbs in quiet stance (~60%). Operate rats strategy of compensation for perturbations was entirely in forelimbs; as a result, the hind-limbs were largely isolated from the perturbation. Stiffness magnitude of the whole body was measured: its magnitude was hourglass shaped, with the principal axis oriented rostrocaudally. Operate rats were significantly less stiff; only 60-75% of normal rats’ stiffness. The injured rats adopt a stance strategy that isolates the hindlimbs from perturbation and may thus prevent hindlimb loadings. Such loadings could initiate reflex stepping, which we observed. This might activate lumbar pattern generators used in their locomotion. Adult spinalized rats never achieve independent hindlimb weight supported stance. The stance strategy of the P1 spinalized rats differed strongly from the behavior of intact rats and may be difficult for rats spinalized as adults to master.

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Collaboration types
Domestic collaboration
Web of Science research areas
Neurosciences
Physiology
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