Contrasting locations of pallidal-receiving neurons and microexcitable zones in primate thalamus

1. In two awake, juvenile male Macaca fascicularis monkeys, microstimulation was applied in ventralis anterior (VA), ventralis lateralis (VL), or ventralis posterior lateralis (VPL) of the thalamus. Thalamic recording was used to identify the region that contained pallidal-receiving (PR) thalamic neurons, cells that responded orthodromically to stimulation in the internal pallidal segment (GPi). Thalamic stimulation was used to elicit motor responses. Penetrations in the thalamus and the pallidum focused on areas with activity related to contralateral arm movement. Fifty one PR cells were identified electrophysiologically in VL oralis (VLo), VL caudalis (VLc) and VA pars parvocellularis (VApc). 2. With a subject at rest, trains of stimuli were applied through the thalamic microelectrode. Palpable or visible muscle twitches or joint movements were evoked by short trains (12 pulses) of stimuli applied in VLc and VPL oralis (VPLo); thresholds there ranged from 5 to 75 mu A. In VA and VLo, areas where PR neurons were located, even longer trains (24 pulses) of stimuli with currents up to 200 mu A usually failed to evoke movement. In the caudal portions of VLo, near VPLo, there were some microexcitable sites found near PR cells where stimuli at similar to 50 mu A elicited movement. 3. From microstimulation studies combined with histological reconstruction, Ashe and co-workers hypothesized that microexcitable zones were cerebellar receiving areas (CR) and nonexcitable zones were PR areas. Our data support theirs and add electrophysiological identification of PR areas. Further, we injected wheat germ agglutinin-horseradish peroxidase (WGA-HRP) into the thalamus at one of the more rostral microexcitable sites, just caudal and lateral to identified PR cells. The tetra-methyl benzidine-reacted HRP label was found in the contralateral deep cerebellar nuclei (DCN) but not in ipsilateral GPi, showing that even this rostral microexcitable zone was a CR area. 4. Together with evidence from the literature, the data are consistent with the hypothesis that PR cells have relatively weak access to spinal-destined motor outputs, whereas thalamocortical neurons from VPLo and VLc have more secure access. In addition to characteristics of cell discharge and responses to somatosensory stimulation, microexcitability may be a further aid in tentative electrophysiological identification of PR versus CR areas of the motor thalamus without necessarily recording thalamic neuronal responses to stimulation in GPi or the DCN.