A new vestibular thalamic area: electrophysiological study of the thalamic reticular nucleus and of the ventral lateral geniculate complex of the cat

Single unit recordings were carried out in the reticularis thalamic nucleus (RT) and the ventral lateral geniculate body (LGv) of chronically prepared alert cats under sinusoidal vestibular stimulation in the horizontal plane. Optokinetic stimulation was also used. Of the 57 recorded neurons, 12 present vestibular modulation in the dark, analogous to Duensing's and Schaefer's (1958) type I response in the vestibular nuclei. Responses of 26 cells are similar to response of type II vestibular neurons and 14 units have a type III response; the 5 remaining cells were activated by vestibular stimulation in the vertical sagittal plane. The majority of these cells does not present detectable direct visual responses, but 50% can be driven by optokinetic stimulation. 74% of types I, II and III neurons show saccadic resonses to vestibular nystagmic saccades in the dark. About 60% present similar saccadic modulations during optokinetic nystagmus and 55% keep this response for spontaneous saccades in the dark or in front of a striped background. The saccadic responses are constant for a given neuron in all cases of stimulation with latencies ranging from 30 msec prior to the beginning of the saccade to 120 msec after its onset. The histological localization of these units falls on one hand into the caudal part of the RT nucleus (type III neurons) above the dorsal lateral geniculate nucleus and on the other hand within the internal subdivision of the LGv and its rostral limit (all other types). The significance of this new, saccadic and vestibular focus in the feline thalamus is discussed in relation with the two previously known vestibular thalamic relays in terms of interrelations between the vestibular and the visual systems.