Effect of spinal cord lesions on forelimb target-reaching and on visually guided switching of target-reaching in the cat.

Cats were trained to reach to an illuminated tube placed horizontally at shoulder level and retrieve food with the forepaw. The trajectory of an infrared light emitting diode, taped to the wrist dorsum, was recorded with a SELSPOT-like recording system. Movement paths and velocity profiles were compared before and after lesions: (1) in dorsal C5, transecting cortico- and rubrospinal pathways to the forelimb segments so that the cats could only use the C3-C4 propriospinal neurones (PNs) to command reaching, (2) in the ventral part of the lateral funicle in C5, transecting the axons of C3-C4 PNs so that the cats had to use circuitry in the forelimb segments to command reaching. Comparison of trajectories and velocity profiles before and after lesion 1 did not reveal any major qualitative change. After lesion 2, the last third of the movement was fragmented with separate lifting and protraction. Switching of target-reaching occurred when illumination was shifted to another tube during the ongoing movement. The switching latency measured from the time of illumination shift to the earliest change in movement trajectory had a minimal value of 50-60 ms. Short latencies were present after lesion 1 as well as lesion 2 which suggest that fast switching mediated by the C3-C4 PNs and the interneuronal system in the forelimb segments is controlled in parallel by the brain. In order to test a hypothesis that fast switching depends on the tectospinal and tecto-reticulospinal pathways (the tecto-reticulo-spinal system) a ventral lesion was made in C2 aiming at interrupting these pathways. Large ventral C2 lesions tended to block conduction in the more dorsally located rubrospinal (less in corticospinal) axons probably due to compression during surgery. When conduction in the rubrospinal tract was completely interrupted by a ventral C2 lesion which also completely transected the axons of the tecto-reticulo-spinal system, then there was a prolongation of the switching latency with 10-20 ms. After a similar large ventral lesion with remaining conduction in the rubrospinal tract the switching latencies were unchanged. It is postulated that fast visually governed switching does not depend on the tecto-reticulo-spinal system alone but on more dorsally located pathways, presumably the rubrospinal tract, either acting alone or together with the tecto-reticulo-spinal system. It is further postulated that the delayed switching after interruption of conduction both in the rubrospinal tract and the tecto-reticulo-spinal system depends on the corticospinal tract. Visual control of rubrospinal and of corticospinal neurones is considered. It is postulated that target-reaching normally depends on signals in the cortico- and rubrospinal tracts and mechanisms for co-ordination of activity in them as required during switching is discussed in view of the findings now reported.