Department of Physiology, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA.
Ann N Y Acad Sci. 2013 Mar;1279:80-9. doi: 10.1111/nyas.12054.
Subcortical descending glutamatergic neurons, such as reticulospinal (RS) neurons, play decisive roles in the initiation and control of many motor behaviors in mammals. However, little is known about the mechanisms used by RS neurons to control spinal motor networks because most of the neuronal elements involved have not been identified and characterized. In this review, we compare, in the embryonic mouse, the timing of developmental events that lead to the formation of synaptic connections between RS and spinal cord neurons. We then summarize our recent research in the postnatal mouse on the organization of synaptic connections between RS neurons and lumbar axial motoneurons (MNs), hindlimb MNs, and commissural interneurons. Finally, we give a brief account of some of the most recent studies on the intrinsic capabilities for plasticity of the mammalian RS system. The present review should give an updated insight into how functional specificity in RS motor networks emerges.
皮质下下行谷氨酸能神经元，如网状脊髓（RS）神经元，在哺乳动物的许多运动行为的发起和控制中起着决定性作用。然而，由于涉及的大多数神经元成分尚未被鉴定和表征，因此对于 RS 神经元用于控制脊髓运动网络的机制知之甚少。在这篇综述中，我们在胚胎小鼠中比较了导致 RS 和脊髓神经元之间形成突触连接的发育事件的时间。然后，我们总结了我们最近在出生后小鼠中的研究结果，即 RS 神经元与腰轴运动神经元（MNs）、后肢 MNs 和连合中间神经元之间的突触连接的组织。最后，我们简要介绍了一些关于哺乳动物 RS 系统内在可塑性能力的最新研究。本综述应该为 RS 运动网络的功能特异性如何出现提供一个最新的见解。
