Latency to initiate locomotion elicited by stimulation of the diencephalon positively correlates in a wake and anesthetized rats

This study determined if locomotor initiation measured under anesthesia provides a valid measure of the intersite factors which determine initiation in the awake condition. For 30 sites, average locomotor initiation latency in the awake condition and the shortest latencies in the anesthetized condition were positively correlated. Locomotion at sites with long latencies in the awake condition was frequently blocked in the anesthetized condition, but sites with short latencies were rarely blocked. The results indicate that the shortest locomotor latencies in the anesthetized condition approximate the latencies measured in the awake condition. It is concluded that the anesthetized condition can provide valid initiation measures, but sites with long latencies in the awake condition are prone to depression under anesthesia.