c-fos expression in central cardiovascular pathways.

Injection of muscimol in the caudal ventrolateral medulla increases blood pressure and stimulates neuronal c-fos expression in the rostral ventral medulla (RVM). The blockade of c-fos expression in the RVM by antisense oligonucleotides attenuates the blood pressure response to this muscimol-induced disinhibition of the RVM and also reduces resting blood pressure. The results suggest that cardiovascular neurons in the RVM express c-fos and that the basal and stimulated expression of the c-fos gene is important in the central regulation of blood pressure.