Jones B E
Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery, McGill University, Montreal Neurological Institute, Quebec, Canada.
Prog Brain Res. 1993;98:61-71. doi: 10.1016/s0079-6123(08)62381-x.
Since the demonstration some 50 years ago of the presence and synthesis of acetylcholine (ACh) in specific neuronal systems within the brain, a wealth of information concerning the organization and functional importance of central cholinergic neurons has emerged through immunohistochemical, neuroanatomical, pharmacological, biochemical and neurophysiological studies. Many of the original theses have proven valid concerning the key structural and functional position of cholinergic neurons within the central reticular core of the brain, where the basic sleep-waking cycle is determined. The two major cholinergic cell groups of this core, one within the pontomesencephalic tegmentum that projects rostrally into the non-specific thalamo-cortical relay system and the other within the basal forebrain that receives input from the brainstem reticular formation and projects in turn as the ventral, extrathalamic relay upon the cerebral cortex, are critically involved in processes of cerebral activation that accompany the states of wakefulness and paradoxical sleep. By interaction with other cell groups, including monoaminergic and GABAergic neurons, and by differential modes of firing, the cholinergic neurons may furthermore shape the responsiveness and activity of the reticular core and thalamo-cortical systems across the sleep-waking cycle.
大约50年前，大脑中特定神经元系统内乙酰胆碱（ACh）的存在和合成被证实以来，通过免疫组织化学、神经解剖学、药理学、生物化学和神经生理学研究，已经出现了大量有关中枢胆碱能神经元的组织和功能重要性的信息。许多最初的论点已被证明是正确的，即胆碱能神经元在大脑中央网状核心中处于关键的结构和功能位置，而基本的睡眠-觉醒周期就是在这个核心中确定的。这个核心的两个主要胆碱能细胞群，一个位于脑桥中脑被盖，向前投射到非特异性丘脑-皮质中继系统；另一个位于基底前脑，接收来自脑干网状结构的输入，并依次作为腹侧、丘脑外中继投射到大脑皮层，它们在伴随清醒和异相睡眠状态的大脑激活过程中起着关键作用。通过与包括单胺能和γ-氨基丁酸能神经元在内的其他细胞群相互作用，以及通过不同的放电模式，胆碱能神经元还可能在整个睡眠-觉醒周期中塑造网状核心和丘脑-皮质系统的反应性和活动。
