[Reorganization of the evoked neuronal activity of the dorsomedial nucleus of the thalamus in the rat shortly after destruction of the basolateral nuclei of the amygdala].

Characteristics of the thalamic dorso-medial nucleus neuronal responses evoked by stimulation of the periamygdaloid cortex before and after the baso-lateral amygdala destruction were compared in anesthetized rats. Appearance of a new reaction in the form of a long rhythmic bursts and reliable decrease of phasic-active units and increase in the number of cells with tonic activation were found after such destruction. The number of units with spontaneous discharge increased without affecting the spontaneous discharge frequency. The mean duration of the tonic discharge increased from 142.5 +/- 42.4 ms to 375.4 +/- 53.8 ms but other parameters of the neuronal reactions did not differ significantly.