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In chronic experiments on 20 awake cats, we studied modulation of nociceptive responses to intense noxious stimulation of the skin of the hindlimb (electrical cutaneous stimulation, ECS) after electrical stimulation of some parts of the brainstem had been applied through chronically implanted electrodes. The stimulated structures were as follows: the nucleus raphe dorsalis, RD, and the dorsolateral zone of the rostral section or the ventrolateral zone of the middle section of the midbrain central gray matter (substantia grisea centralis, SGC), dl SGC and vl SGC, respectively. Freely moving animals were subjected to ECS applied either in isolation or against the background of stimulation of one of the above-mentioned brainstem structures. Integral intensity of nociceptive responses was scored on a four-point scale. In this case, the characteristics of the motor (drawing back of the leg and generalized motor reactions, i.e., change in the posture, episodes of pace, etc.), autonomic (changes in the heart rate, respiratory rate, and respiration depth), and emotional (vocalization, reactions of anxiety and aggression) components of the nociceptive response were taken into account. The strength of standard isolated ECS was selected such that it caused a nociceptive response of the level 3. The same ECS strength, but applied against the background of preliminary stimulation of the vl SGC, in 85% of the tests caused the development of a significantly more intense response (level 4). Under the influence of ECS against the background of stimulation of the dl SGC or RD, in the overwhelming majority of cases, only level-1 responses developed. To obtain a nociceptive level-3 response against the background of stimulation of the dl SGC and RD, the ECS strength should be increased at least twice. Isolated vl SGC stimulation caused nociceptive responses, which as a whole corresponded to level 2. Control isolated stimulation of the dl SGC and RD either did not result in any noticeable behavioral change or evoked minimum responses. We conclude that the SGC with respect to the nociceptive/antinociceptive systems is heterogeneous; the vl SGC should be considered the nociceptive zone, while the dl SGC and RD should be considered the antinociceptive brainstem zones. |
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