Matsumoto N
Exp Neurol. 1984 Aug;85(2):437-51. doi: 10.1016/0014-4886(84)90153-5.
Single-unit discharges were recorded in the oral and facial areas of the cat somatosensory cortex (SI) while electrical stimuli were individually delivered to eight tooth pulps. The incidence of the tooth pulp-driven (TPD) neurons was 44.7% in the oral area, but only 17.3% in the facial area. Both sets of neurons were also excited by nonnoxious stimulation of the oral structures or of the facial hair, and thus were polymodal. These TPD neurons were confirmed histologically to be in area 3b and were classified into monotooth input type and multitooth input type according to their response to stimulation. Neurons of the monotooth input type appeared three times more frequently in the oral area than in the facial area. The input(s) to the TPD neurons in the former area were slightly stronger from the canine(s) than from the molar(s), but the opposite was the case in the facial area. In the oral area, 83% of the TPD neurons responded with brisk discharges of short latency, whereas 54% of the TPD neurons in the facial area responded with those of a long latency. These findings suggest that the pulpal information to the somatosensory cortex is conveyed by pathways that appear, at least at certain points in the nervous system, to be spatially separated.
在猫体感皮层（SI）的口腔和面部区域记录单个神经元放电，同时分别向八颗牙髓施加电刺激。牙髓驱动（TPD）神经元在口腔区域的发生率为44.7%，而在面部区域仅为17.3%。这两组神经元也会因对口腔结构或面部毛发的无害刺激而兴奋，因此是多模式的。这些TPD神经元经组织学证实位于3b区，并根据其对刺激的反应分为单齿输入型和多齿输入型。单齿输入型神经元在口腔区域出现的频率比在面部区域高两倍。在前一个区域，TPD神经元从尖牙的输入比从磨牙的输入略强，但在面部区域情况相反。在口腔区域，83%的TPD神经元以短潜伏期的快速放电做出反应，而在面部区域，54%的TPD神经元以长潜伏期的放电做出反应。这些发现表明，向体感皮层传递的牙髓信息是通过至少在神经系统的某些点上似乎在空间上分离的通路来传递的。
