[Interrelationship between the phenomena of divergence and convergence in the reflex activity of the spinal cord].

In acute experiments on cats, a single electrical stimulus applied to the afferent fibers of the sacral nerve elicits electrical responses of the efferent fibers of this nerve, as well as of other ones, i.e. pelvic and sympathetic trunks in the lumbosacral region (divergence); and the efferent fibers of the sacral nerve respond to stimulation not only through its afferent fibers but also in the said nerve trunks (convergence). A similar pattern occurs during separate electrical stimulation of the pelvic nerve and sympathetic trunk, and of L4 to S3 dorsal roots, with monitoring electrical responses of the corresponding nerves and ventral roots. A close relationship between the divergence and convergence seems to exist.