Pontine respiratory-modulated activity before and after vagotomy in decerebrate cats

Changes in pontine and preBötzinger/Bötzinger complex neuronal activity during remifentanil-induced respiratory depression in decerebrate dogs

Introduction: In vivo studies using selective, localized opioid antagonist injections or localized opioid receptor deletion have identified that systemic opioids dose-dependently depress respiratory output through effects in multiple respiratory-related brainstem areas. Methods: With approval of the subcommittee on animal studies of the Zablocki VA Medical Center, experiments were performed in 53 decerebrate, vagotomized, mechanically ventilated dogs of either sex during isocapnic hyperoxia. We performed single neuron recordings in the Pontine Respiratory Group (PRG, n = 432) and preBötzinger/Bötzinger complex region (preBötC/BötC, n = 213) before and during intravenous remifentanil infusion (0.1-1 mcg/kg/min) and then until complete recovery of phrenic nerve activity. A generalized linear mixed model was used to determine changes in Fn with remifentanil and the statistical association between remifentanil-induced changes in Fn and changes in inspiratory and expiratory duration and peak phrenic activity. Analysis was controlled via random effects for animal, run, and neuron type. Results: Remifentanil decreased Fn in most neuron subtypes in the preBötC/BötC as well as in inspiratory (I), inspiratory-expiratory, expiratory (E) decrementing and non-respiratory modulated neurons in the PRG. The decrease in PRG inspiratory and non-respiratory modulated neuronal activity was associated with an increase in inspiratory duration. In the preBötC, the decrease in I-decrementing neuron activity was associated with an increase in expiratory and of E-decrementing activity with an increase in inspiratory duration. In contrast, decreased activity of I-augmenting neurons was associated with a decrease in inspiratory duration. Discussion: While statistical associations do not necessarily imply a causal relationship, our data suggest mechanisms for the opioid-induced increase in expiratory duration in the PRG and preBötC/BötC and how inspiratory failure at high opioid doses may result from a decrease in activity and decrease in slope of the pre-inspiratory ramp-like activity in preBötC/BötC pre-inspiratory neurons combined with a depression of preBötC/BötC I-augmenting neurons. Additional studies must clarify whether the observed changes in neuronal activity are due to direct neuronal inhibition or decreased excitatory inputs.

Blood pressure drives multispectral tuning of inspiration via a linked-loop neural network

The respiratory motor pattern is coordinated with cardiovascular system regulation. Inspiratory drive and respiratory phase durations are tuned by blood pressure and baroreceptor reflexes. We hypothesized that perturbations of systemic arterial blood pressure modulate inspiratory drive through a raphe-pontomedullary network. In 15 adult decerebrate vagotomized neuromuscular-blocked cats, we used multielectrode arrays to record the activities of 704 neurons within the medullary ventral respiratory column, pons, and raphe areas during baroreceptor-evoked perturbations of breathing, as measured by altered peak activity in integrated efferent phrenic nerve activity and changes in respiratory phase durations. Blood pressure was transiently (30 s) elevated or reduced by inflations of an embolectomy catheter in the descending aorta or inferior vena cava. S-transform time-frequency representations were calculated for multiunit phrenic nerve activity and some spike trains to identify changes in rhythmic activity during perturbations. Altered firing rates in response to either or both conditions were detected for 474 of 704 tested cells. Spike trains of 17,805 neuron pairs were evaluated for short-time scale correlational signatures indicative of functional connectivity with standard cross-correlation analysis, supplemented with gravitational clustering; ∼70% of tested (498 of 704) and responding neurons (333 of 474) were involved in a functional correlation with at least one other cell. Changes in high-frequency oscillations in the spiking of inspiratory neurons and the evocation or resetting of slow quasi-periodic fluctuations in the respiratory motor pattern associated with oscillations of arterial pressure were observed. The results support a linked-loop pontomedullary network architecture for multispectral tuning of inspiration.NEW & NOTEWORTHY The brain network that supports cardiorespiratory coupling remains poorly understood. Using multielectrode arrays, we tested the hypothesis that blood pressure and baroreceptor reflexes "tune" the breathing motor pattern via a raphe-pontomedullary network. Neuron responses to changes in arterial pressure and identified functional connectivity, together with altered high frequency and slow Lundberg B-wave oscillations, support a model with linked recurrent inhibitory loops that stabilize the respiratory network and provide a path for transmission of baroreceptor signals.

Sex-specific vagal and spinal modulation of breathing with chest compression

Lung volume is modulated by sensory afferent feedback via vagal and spinal pathways. The purpose of this study was to systematically alter afferent feedback with and without a mechanical challenge (chest compression). We hypothesized that manipulation of afferent feedback by nebulization of lidocaine, extra-thoracic vagotomy, or lidocaine administration to the pleural space would produce differential effects on the motor pattern of breathing during chest compression in sodium pentobarbital anesthetized rats (N = 43). Our results suggest that: 1) pulmonary stretch receptors are not the sole contributor to breathing feedback in adult male and female rats; 2) of our manipulations, chest compression had the largest effect on early expiratory diaphragm activity (“yield”); 3) reduction of spinally-mediated afferent feedback modulates breathing patterns most likely via inhibition; and 4) breathing parameters demonstrate large sex differences. Compared to males, female animals had lower respiratory rates (RR), which were further depressed by vagotomy, while chest compression increased RR in males, and decreased yield in females without changing RR. Collectively, our results suggest that balance between tonic vagal inhibition and spinal afferent feedback maintains breathing characteristics, and that it is important to specifically evaluate sex differences when studying control of breathing.

Effect of temperature, age and the pons on respiratory rhythm in the rat brainstem-spinal cord

Neonatal animals are extremely tolerant of hypothermia. However, cooling will ultimately lead to ventilatory arrest, or cessation of respiratory movements. Upon rewarming, ventilation can recover spontaneously (autoresuscitation). This study examined the effect of age (P0-P5) and the pons on respiratory-related output during hypothermic ventilatory arrest and recovery using a brainstem-spinal cord preparation of neonatal rats. As temperature fell, burst frequency slowed, burst duration increased, burst shape became fragmented and eventually respiratory arrest occurred in all preparations. Removing the pons had little effect on younger preparations (P0-P2). Older preparations (P4-P5) with the pons removed continued to burst at cooler temperatures compared to pons-intact preparations and burst durations were significantly longer. Episodic breathing patterns were observed in all preparations (all ages, pons on or off) at lower temperatures. At 27 °C, however, episodic breathing was only observed in younger preparations with the pons on. These data suggest that developmental changes occurring at the level of the pons underlie the loss of hypothermic tolerance and episodic breathing.

Reduced computational modelling of Kölliker-Fuse contributions to breathing patterns in Rett syndrome

KEY POINTS

Reduced computational models are used to test effects of loss of inhibition to the Kölliker-Fuse nucleus (KFn). Three reduced computational models that simulate eupnoeic and vagotomized respiratory rhythms are considered. All models exhibit the emergence of respiratory perturbations associated with Rett syndrome as inhibition to the KFn is diminished. Simulations suggest that application of 5-HT_1A agonists can mitigate the respiratory pathology. The three models can be distinguished and tested based on their predictions about connections and dynamics within the respiratory circuit and about effects of perturbations on certain respiratory neuron populations.

ABSTRACT

Rett syndrome (RTT) is a developmental disorder that can lead to respiratory disturbances featuring prolonged apnoeas of variable durations. Determining the mechanisms underlying these effects at the level of respiratory neural circuits would have significant implications for treatment efforts and would also enhance our understanding of respiratory rhythm generation and control. While experimental studies have suggested possible factors contributing to the respiratory patterns of RTT, we take a novel computational approach to the investigation of RTT, which allows for direct manipulation of selected system parameters and testing of specific hypotheses. Specifically, we present three reduced computational models, developed using an established framework, all of which successfully simulate respiratory outputs across eupnoeic and vagotomized conditions. All three models show that loss of inhibition to the Kölliker-Fuse nucleus reproduces the key respiratory alterations associated with RTT and, as suggested experimentally, that effects of 5-HT_1A agonists on the respiratory neural circuit suffice to alleviate this respiratory pathology. Each of the models makes distinct predictions regarding the neuronal populations and interactions underlying these effects, suggesting natural directions for future experimental testing.

Carotid Bodies and the Integrated Cardiorespiratory Response to Hypoxia

Advances in our understanding of brain mechanisms for the hypoxic ventilatory response, coordinated changes in blood pressure, and the long-term consequences of chronic intermittent hypoxia as in sleep apnea, such as hypertension and heart failure, are giving impetus to the search for therapies to "erase" dysfunctional memories distributed in the carotid bodies and central nervous system. We review current network models, open questions, sex differences, and implications for translational research.

Resting parasympathetic dysfunction predicts prosocial helping deficits in behavioral variant frontotemporal dementia

In the behavioral variant of frontotemporal dementia (bvFTD), left-lateralized salience network dysfunction reduces basal activity in the parasympathetic nervous system, a branch of the autonomic nervous system that reduces arousal and fosters empathy and prosociality. Here we examined whether resting parasympathetic deficits in bvFTD related to diminished prosocial behavior. Eighty participants [30 with bvFTD, 25 with Alzheimer's disease (AD), and 25 healthy controls] completed a "helping task" in which we quantified participants' spontaneous reactions to an experimenter who struggled to find a lost key. Participants also underwent an assessment of baseline autonomic nervous system activity and structural magnetic resonance imaging. An exploratory factor analysis of participants' behaviors during the helping task revealed four factors: empathic concern, consolation, disengagement, and impatience. Patients with bvFTD had lower empathic concern and greater disengagement and impatience than the AD and healthy control groups. Patients with bvFTD had lower resting respiratory sinus arrhythmia and faster respiration and heart rates than patients with AD and healthy controls, a pattern consistent with parasympathetic dysfunction. Skin conductance level was also lower in bvFTD than in the other groups. Lower baseline respiratory sinus arrhythmia and faster baseline respiration rates, but not skin conductance level, predicted lower prosocial helping behaviors. Voxel-based morphometry analyses revealed that atrophy in the bilateral medial pulvinar nucleus of the thalamus, midcingulate cortex, and caudate was associated with lower empathic concern and consolation, and atrophy in the bilateral medial pulvinar nucleus of the thalamus, left frontoinsula, and left ventral striatum was associated with greater disengagement and impatience. Left-lateralized frontoinsula atrophy was associated with not only lower respiratory sinus arrhythmia but also with lower consolation and greater disengagement. This study offers evidence for prosocial behavior deficits in bvFTD and suggests that left-lateralized salience network atrophy reduces patients' resting parasympathetic activity and motivation to help others in need.

Carotid chemoreceptors tune breathing via multipath routing: reticular chain and loop operations supported by parallel spike train correlations

We tested the hypothesis that carotid chemoreceptors tune breathing through parallel circuit paths that target distinct elements of an inspiratory neuron chain in the ventral respiratory column (VRC). Microelectrode arrays were used to monitor neuronal spike trains simultaneously in the VRC, peri-nucleus tractus solitarius (p-NTS)-medial medulla, the dorsal parafacial region of the lateral tegmental field (FTL-pF), and medullary raphe nuclei together with phrenic nerve activity during selective stimulation of carotid chemoreceptors or transient hypoxia in 19 decerebrate, neuromuscularly blocked, and artificially ventilated cats. Of 994 neurons tested, 56% had a significant change in firing rate. A total of 33,422 cell pairs were evaluated for signs of functional interaction; 63% of chemoresponsive neurons were elements of at least one pair with correlational signatures indicative of paucisynaptic relationships. We detected evidence for postinspiratory neuron inhibition of rostral VRC I-Driver (pre-Bötzinger) neurons, an interaction predicted to modulate breathing frequency, and for reciprocal excitation between chemoresponsive p-NTS neurons and more downstream VRC inspiratory neurons for control of breathing depth. Chemoresponsive pericolumnar tonic expiratory neurons, proposed to amplify inspiratory drive by disinhibition, were correlationally linked to afferent and efferent "chains" of chemoresponsive neurons extending to all monitored regions. The chains included coordinated clusters of chemoresponsive FTL-pF neurons with functional links to widespread medullary sites involved in the control of breathing. The results support long-standing concepts on brain stem network architecture and a circuit model for peripheral chemoreceptor modulation of breathing with multiple circuit loops and chains tuned by tegmental field neurons with quasi-periodic discharge patterns. NEW & NOTEWORTHY We tested the long-standing hypothesis that carotid chemoreceptors tune the frequency and depth of breathing through parallel circuit operations targeting the ventral respiratory column. Responses to stimulation of the chemoreceptors and identified functional connectivity support differential tuning of inspiratory neuron burst duration and firing rate and a model of brain stem network architecture incorporating tonic expiratory "hub" neurons regulated by convergent neuronal chains and loops through rostral lateral tegmental field neurons with quasi-periodic discharge patterns.

A Subregion of the Parabrachial Nucleus Partially Mediates Respiratory Rate Depression from Intravenous Remifentanil in Young and Adult Rabbits

BACKGROUND

The efficacy of opioid administration to reduce postoperative pain is limited by respiratory depression. We investigated whether clinically relevant opioid concentrations altered the respiratory pattern in the parabrachial nucleus, a pontine region contributing to respiratory pattern generation, and compared these effects with a medullary respiratory site, the pre-Bötzinger complex.

METHODS

Studies were performed in 40 young and 55 adult artificially ventilated, decerebrate rabbits. We identified an area in the parabrachial nucleus where α-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methyl-4-isoxazolepropionic acid microinjections elicited tachypnea. Two protocols were performed in separate sets of animals. First, bilateral microinjections of the μ-opioid receptor agonist [D-Ala, N-MePhe, Gly-ol]-enkephalin (100 μM) into the "tachypneic area" determined the effect of maximal μ-opioid receptor activation. Second, respiratory rate was decreased with continuous IV infusions of remifentanil. The opioid antagonist naloxone (1 mM) was then microinjected bilaterally into the "tachypneic area" of the parabrachial nucleus to determine whether the respiratory rate depression could be locally reversed.

RESULTS

Average respiratory rate was 27 ± 10 breaths/min. First, [D-Ala, N-MePhe, Gly-ol]-enkephalin injections decreased respiratory rate by 62 ± 20% in young and 45 ± 26% in adult rabbits (both P < 0.001). Second, during IV remifentanil infusion, bilateral naloxone injections into the "tachypneic area" of the parabrachial nucleus reversed respiratory rate depression from 55 ± 9% to 20 ± 14% in young and from 46 ± 20% to 18 ± 27% in adult rabbits (both P < 0.001). The effects of bilateral [D-Ala, N-MePhe, Gly-ol]-enkephalin injection and IV remifentanil on respiratory phase duration in the "tachypneic area" of the parabrachial nucleus was significantly different from the pre-Bötzinger complex.

CONCLUSIONS

The "tachypneic area" of the parabrachial nucleus is highly sensitive to μ-opioid receptor activation and mediates part of the respiratory rate depression by clinically relevant administration of opioids.

Blockade of dorsolateral pontine 5HT1A receptors destabilizes the respiratory rhythm in C57BL6/J wild-type mice

The neurotransmitter serotonin (5HT) acting via 5HT1a receptors (5HT1aR) is a potent determinant of respiratory rhythm variability. Here, we address the 5HT1aR-dependent control of respiratory rhythm variability in C57BL6/J mice. Using the in situ perfused preparation, we compared the effects of systemic versus focal blockade of 5HT1aRs. Blocking 5HT1aRs in the Kölliker-Fuse nucleus (KFn) increased the occurrence of spontaneous apneas and accounted for the systemic effects of 5HT1aR antagonists. Further, 5HT1aRs of the KFn stabilized the respiratory rhythm's response to arterial chemoreflex perturbations; reducing the recovering time, e.g., the latency to return to the baseline pattern. Together, these results suggest that the KFn regulates both intrinsic and sensory determinants of respiratory rhythm variability.

Automatic classification of canine PRG neuronal discharge patterns using K-means clustering

Respiratory-related neurons in the parabrachial-Kölliker-Fuse (PB-KF) region of the pons play a key role in the control of breathing. The neuronal activities of these pontine respiratory group (PRG) neurons exhibit a variety of inspiratory (I), expiratory (E), phase spanning and non-respiratory related (NRM) discharge patterns. Due to the variety of patterns, it can be difficult to classify them into distinct subgroups according to their discharge contours. This report presents a method that automatically classifies neurons according to their discharge patterns and derives an average subgroup contour of each class. It is based on the K-means clustering technique and it is implemented via SigmaPlot User-Defined transform scripts. The discharge patterns of 135 canine PRG neurons were classified into seven distinct subgroups. Additional methods for choosing the optimal number of clusters are described. Analysis of the results suggests that the K-means clustering method offers a robust objective means of both automatically categorizing neuron patterns and establishing the underlying archetypical contours of subtypes based on the discharge patterns of group of neurons.

Regulation of the chemosensory control of breathing by Kölliker-Fuse neurons

The Kölliker-Fuse region (KF) and the lateral parabrachial nucleus (LPBN) have been implicated in the maintenance of cardiorespiratory control. Here, we evaluated the involvement of the KF region and the LPBN in cardiorespiratory responses elicited by chemoreceptor activation in unanesthetized rats. Male Wistar rats (280-330 g; n = 5-9/group) with bilateral stainless-steel guide cannulas implanted in the KF region or the LPBN were used. Injection of muscimol (100 and 200 pmol/100 nl) in the KF region decreased resting ventilation (1,140 ± 68 and 978 ± 100 vs. saline: 1,436 ± 155 ml·kg(-1)·min(-1)), without changing mean arterial pressure (MAP) and heart rate (HR). Bilateral injection of the GABA-A antagonist bicuculline (1 nmol/100 nl) in the KF blocked the inhibitory effect on ventilation (1,418 ± 138 vs. muscimol: 978 ± 100 ml·kg(-1)·min(-1)) elicited by muscimol. Muscimol injection in the KF reduced the increase in ventilation produced by hypoxia (8% O2) (1,827 ± 61 vs. saline: 3,179 ± 325 ml·kg(-1)·min(-1)) or hypercapnia (7% CO2) (1,488 ± 277 vs. saline: 3,539 ± 374 ml·kg(-1)·min(-1)) in unanesthetized rats. Bilateral injection of bicuculline in the KF blocked the decrease in ventilation produced by muscimol in the KF during peripheral or central chemoreflex activation. Bilateral injection of muscimol in the LPBN did not change resting ventilation or the increase in ventilation elicited by hypoxia or hypercapnia. The results of the present study suggest that the KF region, but not the LPBN, has mechanisms to control ventilation in resting, hypoxic, or hypercapnic conditions in unanesthetized rats.

Bidirectional plasticity of pontine pneumotaxic postinspiratory drive: implication for a pontomedullary respiratory central pattern generator

The "pneumotaxic center" in the rostral dorsolateral pons as delineated by Lumsden nine decades ago is known to play an important role in promoting the inspiratory off-switch (IOS) for inspiratory-expiratory phase transition as a fail-safe mechanism for preventing apneusis in the absence of vagal input. Traditionally, the pontine pneumotaxic mechanism has been thought to contribute a tonic descending input that lowers the IOS threshold in medullary respiratory central pattern generator (rCPG) circuits, but otherwise does not constitute part of the rCPG. Recent evidence indicates that descending input from the Kölliker-Fuse nucleus (KFN) within the pneumotaxic center is essential for gating the postinspiratory phase of the three-phase respiratory rhythm to control the IOS in vagotomized animals. A critical question arising is whether such a descending pneumotaxic input from KFN that drives postinspiratory activity is tonic (null hypothesis) or rhythmic with postinspiratory phase modulation (alternative hypothesis). Here, we show that multifarious evidence reported in the literature collectively indicates that the descending pneumotaxic input may exhibit NMDA receptor-dependent short-term plasticity in the form of a biphasic neural differentiator that bidirectionally and phase-selectively modulates postinspiratory phase duration in response to vagal and peripheral chemoreceptor inputs independent of the responses in inspiratory and late-expiratory activities. The phase-selectivity property of the descending pneumotaxic input implicates a population of pontine early-expiratory (postinspiratory/expiratory-decrementing) neurons as the most likely neural correlate of the pneumotaxic mechanism that drives post-I activity, suggesting that the pontine pneumotaxic mechanism may be an integral part of a pontomedullary rCPG that underlies the three-phase respiratory rhythm.

Pontine mechanisms of respiratory control

Pontine respiratory nuclei provide synaptic input to medullary rhythmogenic circuits to shape and adapt the breathing pattern. An understanding of this statement depends on appreciating breathing as a behavior, rather than a stereotypic rhythm. In this review, we focus on the pontine-mediated inspiratory off-switch (IOS) associated with postinspiratory glottal constriction. Further, IOS is examined in the context of pontine regulation of glottal resistance in response to multimodal sensory inputs and higher commands, which in turn rules timing, duration, and patterning of respiratory airflow. In addition, network plasticity in respiratory control emerges during the development of the pons. Synaptic plasticity is required for dynamic and efficient modulation of the expiratory breathing pattern to cope with rapid changes from eupneic to adaptive breathing linked to exploratory (foraging and sniffing) and expulsive (vocalizing, coughing, sneezing, and retching) behaviors, as well as conveyance of basic emotions. The speed and complexity of changes in the breathing pattern of behaving animals implies that "learning to breathe" is necessary to adjust to changing internal and external states to maintain homeostasis and survival.

Decreased Hering-Breuer input-output entrainment in a mouse model of Rett syndrome

Rett syndrome, a severe X-linked neurodevelopmental disorder caused by mutations in the gene encoding methyl-CpG-binding protein 2 (Mecp2), is associated with a highly irregular respiratory pattern including severe upper-airway dysfunction. Recent work suggests that hyperexcitability of the Hering-Breuer reflex (HBR) pathway contributes to respiratory dysrhythmia in Mecp2 mutant mice. To assess how enhanced HBR input impacts respiratory entrainment by sensory afferents in closed-loop in vivo-like conditions, we investigated the input (vagal stimulus trains) - output (phrenic bursting) entrainment via the HBR in wild-type and MeCP2-deficient mice. Using the in situ perfused brainstem preparation, which maintains an intact pontomedullary axis capable of generating an in vivo-like respiratory rhythm in the absence of the HBR, we mimicked the HBR feedback input by stimulating the vagus nerve (at threshold current, 0.5 ms pulse duration, 75 Hz pulse frequency, 100 ms train duration) at an inter-burst frequency matching that of the intrinsic oscillation of the inspiratory motor output of each preparation. Using this approach, we observed significant input-output entrainment in wild-type mice as measured by the maximum of the cross-correlation function, the peak of the instantaneous relative phase distribution, and the mutual information of the instantaneous phases. This entrainment was associated with a reduction in inspiratory duration during feedback stimulation. In contrast, the strength of input-output entrainment was significantly weaker in Mecp2 (-/+) mice. However, Mecp2 (-/+) mice also had a reduced inspiratory duration during stimulation, indicating that reflex behavior in the HBR pathway was intact. Together, these observations suggest that the respiratory network compensates for enhanced sensitivity of HBR inputs by reducing HBR input-output entrainment.

Control of breathing by interacting pontine and pulmonary feedback loops

The medullary respiratory network generates respiratory rhythm via sequential phase switching, which in turn is controlled by multiple feedbacks including those from the pons and nucleus tractus solitarii; the latter mediates pulmonary afferent feedback to the medullary circuits. It is hypothesized that both pontine and pulmonary feedback pathways operate via activation of medullary respiratory neurons that are critically involved in phase switching. Moreover, the pontine and pulmonary control loops interact, so that pulmonary afferents control the gain of pontine influence of the respiratory pattern. We used an established computational model of the respiratory network (Smith et al., 2007) and extended it by incorporating pontine circuits and pulmonary feedback. In the extended model, the pontine neurons receive phasic excitatory activation from, and provide feedback to, medullary respiratory neurons responsible for the onset and termination of inspiration. The model was used to study the effects of: (1) "vagotomy" (removal of pulmonary feedback), (2) suppression of pontine activity attenuating pontine feedback, and (3) these perturbations applied together on the respiratory pattern and durations of inspiration (T(I)) and expiration (T(E)). In our model: (a) the simulated vagotomy resulted in increases of both T(I) and T(E), (b) the suppression of pontine-medullary interactions led to the prolongation of T(I) at relatively constant, but variable T(E), and (c) these perturbations applied together resulted in "apneusis," characterized by a significantly prolonged T(I). The results of modeling were compared with, and provided a reasonable explanation for, multiple experimental data. The characteristic changes in T(I) and T(E) demonstrated with the model may represent characteristic changes in the balance between the pontine and pulmonary feedback control mechanisms that may reflect specific cardio-respiratory disorders and diseases.

A joint computational respiratory neural network-biomechanical model for breathing and airway defensive behaviors

Data-driven computational neural network models have been used to study mechanisms for generating the motor patterns for breathing and breathing related behaviors such as coughing. These models have commonly been evaluated in open loop conditions or with feedback of lung volume simply represented as a filtered version of phrenic motor output. Limitations of these approaches preclude assessment of the influence of mechanical properties of the musculoskeletal system and motivated development of a biomechanical model of the respiratory muscles, airway, and lungs using published measures from human subjects. Here we describe the model and some aspects of its behavior when linked to a computational brainstem respiratory network model for breathing and airway defensive behavior composed of discrete "integrate and fire" populations. The network incorporated multiple circuit paths and operations for tuning inspiratory drive suggested by prior work. Results from neuromechanical system simulations included generation of a eupneic-like breathing pattern and the observation that increased respiratory drive and operating volume result in higher peak flow rates during cough, even when the expiratory drive is unchanged, or when the expiratory abdominal pressure is unchanged. Sequential elimination of the model's sources of inspiratory drive during cough also suggested a role for disinhibitory regulation via tonic expiratory neurons, a result that was subsequently supported by an analysis of in vivo data. Comparisons with antecedent models, discrepancies with experimental results, and some model limitations are noted.

Computational models and emergent properties of respiratory neural networks

Computational models of the neural control system for breathing in mammals provide a theoretical and computational framework bringing together experimental data obtained from different animal preparations under various experimental conditions. Many of these models were developed in parallel and iteratively with experimental studies and provided predictions guiding new experiments. This data-driven modeling approach has advanced our understanding of respiratory network architecture and neural mechanisms underlying generation of the respiratory rhythm and pattern, including their functional reorganization under different physiological conditions. Models reviewed here vary in neurobiological details and computational complexity and span multiple spatiotemporal scales of respiratory control mechanisms. Recent models describe interacting populations of respiratory neurons spatially distributed within the Bötzinger and pre-Bötzinger complexes and rostral ventrolateral medulla that contain core circuits of the respiratory central pattern generator (CPG). Network interactions within these circuits along with intrinsic rhythmogenic properties of neurons form a hierarchy of multiple rhythm generation mechanisms. The functional expression of these mechanisms is controlled by input drives from other brainstem components,including the retrotrapezoid nucleus and pons, which regulate the dynamic behavior of the core circuitry. The emerging view is that the brainstem respiratory network has rhythmogenic capabilities at multiple levels of circuit organization. This allows flexible, state-dependent expression of different neural pattern-generation mechanisms under various physiological conditions,enabling a wide repertoire of respiratory behaviors. Some models consider control of the respiratory CPG by pulmonary feedback and network reconfiguration during defensive behaviors such as cough. Future directions in modeling of the respiratory CPG are considered.

Discharge Identity of Medullary Inspiratory Neurons is Altered during Repetitive Fictive Cough

This study investigated the stability of the discharge identity of inspiratory decrementing (I-Dec) and augmenting (I-Aug) neurons in the caudal (cVRC) and rostral (rVRC) ventral respiratory column during repetitive fictive cough in the cat. Inspiratory neurons in the cVRC (n = 23) and rVRC (n = 17) were recorded with microelectrodes. Fictive cough was elicited by mechanical stimulation of the intrathoracic trachea. Approximately 43% (10 of 23) of I-Dec neurons shifted to an augmenting discharge pattern during the first cough cycle (C1). By the second cough cycle (C2), half of these returned to a decrementing pattern. Approximately 94% (16 of 17) of I-Aug neurons retained an augmenting pattern during C1 of a multi-cough response episode. Phrenic burst amplitude and inspiratory duration increased during C1, but decreased with each subsequent cough in a series of repetitive coughs. As a step in evaluating the model-driven hypothesis that VRC I-Dec neurons contribute to the augmentation of inspiratory drive during cough via inhibition of VRC tonic expiratory neurons that inhibit premotor inspiratory neurons, cross-correlation analysis was used to assess relationships of tonic expiratory cells with simultaneously recorded inspiratory neurons. Our results suggest that reconfiguration of inspiratory-related sub-networks of the respiratory pattern generator occurs on a cycle-by-cycle basis during repetitive coughing.

Blood pressure changes alter tracheobronchial cough: computational model of the respiratory-cough network and in vivo experiments in anesthetized cats

We tested the hypothesis, motivated in part by a coordinated computational cough network model, that alterations of mean systemic arterial blood pressure (BP) influence the excitability and motor pattern of cough. Model simulations predicted suppression of coughing by stimulation of arterial baroreceptors. In vivo experiments were conducted on anesthetized spontaneously breathing cats. Cough was elicited by mechanical stimulation of the intrathoracic airways. Electromyograms (EMG) of inspiratory parasternal, expiratory abdominal, laryngeal posterior cricoarytenoid (PCA), and thyroarytenoid muscles along with esophageal pressure (EP) and BP were recorded. Transiently elevated BP significantly reduced cough number, cough-related inspiratory, and expiratory amplitudes of EP, peak parasternal and abdominal EMG, and maximum of PCA EMG during the expulsive phase of cough, and prolonged the cough inspiratory and expiratory phases as well as cough cycle duration compared with control coughs. Latencies from the beginning of stimulation to the onset of cough-related diaphragm and abdominal activities were increased. Increases in BP also elicited bradycardia and isocapnic bradypnea. Reductions in BP increased cough number; elevated inspiratory EP amplitude and parasternal, abdominal, and inspiratory PCA EMG amplitudes; decreased total cough cycle duration; shortened the durations of the cough expiratory phase and cough-related abdominal discharge; and shortened cough latency compared with control coughs. Reduced BP also produced tachycardia, tachypnea, and hypocapnic hyperventilation. These effects of BP on coughing likely originate from interactions between barosensitive and respiratory brainstem neuronal networks, particularly by modulation of respiratory neurons within multiple respiration/cough-related brainstem areas by baroreceptor input.

The use of multiscale systems biology approaches to facilitate understanding of complex control systems for airway protection

Airway protection is a critically important function that prevents/limits the intrusion of foreign material into the pulmonary tree. A host of different behaviors participate in this process. The control, coordination, and execution of these behaviors is a complex process that has recently received increased attention. Data from human clinical and animal studies support the concept of a coordinated neural control system that governs the appropriate expression and sequencing of airway protective behaviors. Our current knowledge of the proposed neural control network for breathing, cough, swallow and other airway protective behaviors indicates that it is a highly complex system that can 'rewire' (reconfigure) itself to perform several different functions. Computational modeling and simulation have been used as tools to investigate this system. The results of modeling efforts have yielded motor output patterns of upper airway and respiratory muscles that are very similar to those recorded in vivo. Regulation and coordination of multiple different airway protective behaviors have been successfully simulated. Outcomes of simulation efforts support the hypothesis that computational modeling of airway protection can yield important testable hypotheses regarding brainstem neural network functions and organization. Modeling of complex systems can be challenging but the open availability of straight-forward computational tools is likely to result in increased implementation of modeling and simulation as adjuncts to traditional methods of investigation of the control of the upper airway.

Vagal-dependent nonlinear variability in the respiratory pattern of anesthetized, spontaneously breathing rats

Physiological rhythms, including respiration, exhibit endogenous variability associated with health, and deviations from this are associated with disease. Specific changes in the linear and nonlinear sources of breathing variability have not been investigated. In this study, we used information theory-based techniques, combined with surrogate data testing, to quantify and characterize the vagal-dependent nonlinear pattern variability in urethane-anesthetized, spontaneously breathing adult rats. Surrogate data sets preserved the amplitude distribution and linear correlations of the original data set, but nonlinear correlation structure in the data was removed. Differences in mutual information and sample entropy between original and surrogate data sets indicated the presence of deterministic nonlinear or stochastic non-Gaussian variability. With vagi intact (n = 11), the respiratory cycle exhibited significant nonlinear behavior in templates of points separated by time delays ranging from one sample to one cycle length. After vagotomy (n = 6), even though nonlinear variability was reduced significantly, nonlinear properties were still evident at various time delays. Nonlinear deterministic variability did not change further after subsequent bilateral microinjection of MK-801, an N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor antagonist, in the Kölliker-Fuse nuclei. Reversing the sequence (n = 5), blocking N-methyl-D-aspartate receptors bilaterally in the dorsolateral pons significantly decreased nonlinear variability in the respiratory pattern, even with the vagi intact, and subsequent vagotomy did not change nonlinear variability. Thus both vagal and dorsolateral pontine influences contribute to nonlinear respiratory pattern variability. Furthermore, breathing dynamics of the intact system are mutually dependent on vagal and pontine sources of nonlinear complexity. Understanding the structure and modulation of variability provides insight into disease effects on respiratory patterning.

Intermittent hypoxia-induced sensitization of central chemoreceptors contributes to sympathetic nerve activity during late expiration in rats

Hypertension elicited by chronic intermittent hypoxia (CIH) is associated with elevated activity of the thoracic sympathetic nerve (tSN) that exhibits an enhanced respiratory modulation reflecting a strengthened interaction between respiratory and sympathetic networks within the brain stem. Expiration is a passive process except for special metabolic conditions such as hypercapnia, when it becomes active through phasic excitation of abdominal motor nerves (AbN) in late expiration. An increase in CO(2) evokes late-expiratory (late-E) discharges phase-locked to phrenic bursts with the frequency increasing quantally as hypercapnia increases. In rats exposed to CIH, the late-E discharges synchronized in AbN and tSN emerge in normocapnia. To elucidate the possible neural mechanisms underlying these phenomena, we extended our computational model of the brain stem respiratory network by incorporating a population of presympathetic neurons in the rostral ventrolateral medulla that received inputs from the pons, medullary respiratory compartments, and retrotrapezoid nucleus/parafacial respiratory group (RTN/pFRG). Our simulations proposed that CIH conditioning increases the CO(2) sensitivity of RTN/pFRG neurons, causing a reduction in both the CO(2) threshold for emerging the late-E activity in AbN and tSN and the hypocapnic threshold for apnea. Using the in situ rat preparation, we have confirmed that CIH-conditioned rats under normal conditions exhibit synchronized late-E discharges in AbN and tSN similar to those observed in control rats during hypercapnia. Moreover, the hypocapnic threshold for apnea was significantly lowered in CIH-conditioned rats relative to that in control rats. We conclude that CIH may sensitize central chemoreception and that this significantly contributes to the neural impetus for generation of sympathetic activity and hypertension.

Ventrolateral medullary functional connectivity and the respiratory and central chemoreceptor-evoked modulation of retrotrapezoid-parafacial neurons

The medullary ventral respiratory column (VRC) of neurons is essential for respiratory motor pattern generation; however, the functional connections among these cells are not well understood. A rostral extension of the VRC, including the retrotrapezoid nucleus/parafacial region (RTN-pF), contains neurons responsive to local perturbations of CO(2)/pH. We addressed the hypothesis that both local RTN-pF interactions and functional connections from more caudal VRC compartments--extending from the Bötzinger and pre-Bötzinger complexes to the ventral respiratory group (Böt-VRG)--influence the respiratory modulation of RTN-pF neurons and their responses to central chemoreceptor and baroreflex activation. Spike trains from 294 RTN-pF and 490 Böt-VRG neurons were monitored with multielectrode arrays along with phrenic nerve activity in 14 decerebrate, vagotomized cats. Overall, 214 RTN-pF and 398 Böt-VRG neurons were respiratory modulated; 124 and 95, respectively, were cardiac modulated. Subsets of these neurons were tested with sequential, selective, transient stimulation of central chemoreceptors and arterial baroreceptors; each cell's response was evaluated and categorized according to the change in firing rate (if any) following the stimulus. Cross-correlation analysis was applied to 2,884 RTN-pF↔RTN-pF and 8,490 Böt-VRG↔RTN-pF neuron pairs. In total, 174 RTN-pF neurons (59.5%) had significant features in short-time scale correlations with other RTN-pF neurons. Of these, 49 neurons triggered cross-correlograms with offset peaks or troughs (n = 99) indicative of paucisynaptic excitation or inhibition of the target. Forty-nine Böt-VRG neurons (10.0%) were triggers in 74 Böt-VRG→RTN-pF correlograms with offset features, suggesting that Böt-VRG trigger neurons influence RTN-pF target neurons. The results support the hypothesis that local RTN-pF neuron interactions and inputs from Böt-VRG neurons jointly contribute to respiratory modulation of RTN-pF neuronal discharge patterns and promotion or limitation of their responses to central chemoreceptor and baroreceptor stimulation.

A role for the Kolliker-Fuse nucleus in cholinergic modulation of breathing at night during wakefulness and NREM sleep

For many years, acetylcholine has been known to contribute to the control of breathing and sleep. To probe further the contributions of cholinergic rostral pontine systems in control of breathing, we designed this study to test the hypothesis that microdialysis (MD) of the muscarinic receptor antagonist atropine into the pontine respiratory group (PRG) would decrease breathing more in animals while awake than while in NREM sleep. In 16 goats, cannulas were bilaterally implanted into rostral pontine tegmental nuclei (n = 3), the lateral (n = 3) or medial (n = 4) parabrachial nuclei, or the Kölliker-Fuse nucleus (KFN; n = 6). After >2 wk of recovery from surgery, the goats were studied during a 45-min period of MD with mock cerebrospinal fluid (mCSF), followed by at least 30 min of recovery and a second 45-min period of MD with atropine. Unilateral and bilateral MD studies were completed during the day and at night. MD of atropine into the KFN at night decreased pulmonary ventilation and breathing frequency and increased inspiratory and expiratory time by 12-14% during both wakefulness and NREM sleep. However, during daytime studies, MD of atropine into the KFN had no effect on these variables. Unilateral and bilateral nighttime MD of atropine into the KFN increased levels of NREM sleep by 63 and 365%, respectively. MD during the day or at night into the other three pontine sites had minimal effects on any variable studied. Finally, compared with MD of mCSF, bilateral MD of atropine decreased levels of acetylcholine and choline in the effluent dialysis fluid. Our data support the concept that the KFN is a significant contributor to cholinergically modulated control of breathing and sleep.

Respiratory and Mayer wave-related discharge patterns of raphé and pontine neurons change with vagotomy

Previous models have attributed changes in respiratory modulation of pontine neurons after vagotomy to a loss of pulmonary stretch receptor "gating" of an efference copy of inspiratory drive. Recently, our group confirmed that pontine neurons change firing patterns and become more respiratory modulated after vagotomy, although average peak and mean firing rates of the sample did not increase (Dick et al., J Physiol 586: 4265-4282, 2008). Because raphé neurons are also elements of the brain stem respiratory network, we tested the hypotheses that after vagotomy raphé neurons have increased respiratory modulation and that alterations in their firing patterns are similar to those seen for pontine neurons during withheld lung inflation. Raphé and pontine neurons were recorded simultaneously before and after vagotomy in decerebrated cats. Before vagotomy, 14% of 95 raphé neurons had increased activity during single respiratory cycles prolonged by withholding lung inflation; 13% exhibited decreased activity. After vagotomy, the average index of respiratory modulation (eta(2)) increased (0.05 +/- 0.10 to 0.12 +/- 0.18 SD; Student's paired t-test, P < 0.01). Time series and frequency domain analyses identified pontine and raphé neuron firing rate modulations with a 0.1-Hz rhythm coherent with blood pressure Mayer waves. These "Mayer wave-related oscillations" (MWROs) were coupled with central respiratory drive and became synchronized with the central respiratory rhythm after vagotomy (7 of 10 animals). Cross-correlation analysis identified functional connectivity in 52 of 360 pairs of neurons with MWROs. Collectively, the results suggest that a distributed network participates in the generation of MWROs and in the coordination of respiratory and vasomotor rhythms.

Pontine respiratory activity involved in inspiratory/expiratory phase transition

Control of the timing of the inspiratory/expiratory (IE) phase transition is a hallmark of respiratory pattern formation. In principle, sensory feedback from pulmonary stretch receptors (Breuer-Hering reflex, BHR) is seen as the major controller for the IE phase transition, while pontine-based control of IE phase transition by both the pontine Kölliker-Fuse nucleus (KF) and parabrachial complex is seen as a secondary or backup mechanism. However, previous studies have shown that the BHR can habituate in vivo. Thus, habituation reduces sensory feedback, so the role of the pons, and specifically the KF, for IE phase transition may increase dramatically. Pontine-mediated control of the IE phase transition is not completely understood. In the present review, we discuss existing models for ponto-medullary interaction that may be involved in the control of inspiratory duration and IE transition. We also present intracellular recordings of pontine respiratory units derived from an in situ intra-arterially perfused brainstem preparation of rats. With the absence of lung inflation, this preparation generates a normal respiratory pattern and many of the recorded pontine units demonstrated phasic respiratory-related activity. The analysis of changes in membrane potentials of pontine respiratory neurons has allowed us to propose a number of pontine-medullary interactions not considered before. The involvement of these putative interactions in pontine-mediated control of IE phase transitions is discussed.

Central and peripheral chemoreceptors evoke distinct responses in simultaneously recorded neurons of the raphé-pontomedullary respiratory network

The brainstem network for generating and modulating the respiratory motor pattern includes neurons of the medullary ventrolateral respiratory column (VRC), dorsolateral pons (PRG) and raphé nuclei. Midline raphé neurons are proposed to be elements of a distributed brainstem system of central chemoreceptors, as well as modulators of central chemoreceptors at other sites, including the retrotrapezoid nucleus. Stimulation of the raphé system or peripheral chemoreceptors can induce a long-term facilitation of phrenic nerve activity; central chemoreceptor stimulation does not. The network mechanisms through which each class of chemoreceptor differentially influences breathing are poorly understood. Microelectrode arrays were used to monitor sets of spike trains from 114 PRG, 198 VRC and 166 midline neurons in six decerebrate vagotomized cats; 356 were recorded during sequential stimulation of both receptor classes via brief CO(2)-saturated saline injections in vertebral (central) and carotid arteries (peripheral). Seventy neurons responded to both stimuli. More neurons were responsive only to peripheral challenges than those responsive only to central chemoreceptor stimulation (PRG, 20 : 4; VRC, 41 : 10; midline, 25 : 13). Of 16 474 pairs of neurons evaluated for short-time scale correlations, similar percentages of reference neurons in each brain region had correlation features indicative of a specific interaction with at least one target neuron: PRG (59.6%), VRC (51.0%) and raphé nuclei (45.8%). The results suggest a brainstem network architecture with connectivity that shapes the respiratory motor pattern via overlapping circuits that modulate central and peripheral chemoreceptor-mediated influences on breathing.

Learning to breathe: control of the inspiratory-expiratory phase transition shifts from sensory- to central-dominated during postnatal development in rats

The hallmark of the dynamic regulation of the transitions between inspiration and expiration is the timing of the inspiratory off-switch (IOS) mechanisms. IOS is mediated by pulmonary vagal afferent feedback (Breuer-Hering reflex) and by central interactions involving the Kölliker-Fuse nuclei (KFn). We hypothesized that the balance between these two mechanisms controlling IOS may change during postnatal development. We tested this hypothesis by comparing neural responses to repetitive rhythmic vagal stimulation, at a stimulation frequency that paces baseline breathing, using in situ perfused brainstem preparations of rats at different postnatal ages. At ages < P15 (P, postnatal days), phrenic nerve activity (PNA) was immediately paced and entrained to the afferent input and this pattern remained unchanged by repetitive stimulations, indicating that vagal input stereotypically dominated the control of IOS. In contrast, PNA entrainment at > P15 was initially insignificant, but increased after repetitive vagal stimulation or lung inflation. This progressive adaption of PNA to the pattern of the sensory input was accompanied by the emergence of anticipatory centrally mediated IOS preceding the stimulus trains. The anticipatory IOS was blocked by bilateral microinjections of NMDA receptor antagonists into the KFn and PNA was immediately paced and entrained, as it was seen at ages < P15. We conclude that as postnatal maturation advances, synaptic mechanisms involving NMDA receptors in the KFn can override the vagally evoked IOS after 'training' using repetitive stimulation trials. The anticipatory IOS may imply a hitherto undescribed form of pattern learning and recall in convergent sensory and central synaptic pathways that mediate IOS.

Respiratory activity of the neonatal dorsolateral pons in vitro

The lateral and medial parabrachial and the Kölliker-Fuse nuclei (NPB/KF) are well known respiratory modulating centers in adulthood, but their role in neonates is largely unknown. We examined the role of the NPB/KF using hemi-sectioned pons-brainstem-spinal cord preparations in neonatal rats. Electrical stimulation applied at various intensities and delays in relation to the onset of spontaneous inspiratory C4 bursts, evoked transient depression or termination of C4 activity. This depression/termination was greatly attenuated either after perfusion of the NMDA-receptor antagonists (MK-801 or APV) or after microinjecting MK-801 into NPB/KF. Furthermore systemic application of the GABA-A receptor antagonist bicuculline reduced NPB/KF evoked inhibition of the C4 burst. Finally, we identified inspiratory, tonic inspiratory, expiratory, and inspiratory-expiratory (I-E) neurons which was major in the recorded neurons in the NPB/KF using the whole-cell patch-clamp method. MK-801 significantly decreased the driving potential and burst duration of I-E neurons. We conclude that neonatal NPB/KF mediated inspiratory off-switch operates on similar synaptic mechanisms as an adult.

Pontine-ventral respiratory column interactions through raphe circuits detected using multi-array spike train recordings

Recently, Segers et al. identified functional connectivity between the ventrolateral respiratory column (VRC) and the pontine respiratory group (PRG). The apparent sparseness of detected paucisynaptic interactions motivated consideration of other potential functional pathways between these two regions. We report here evidence for "indirect" serial functional linkages between the PRG and VRC via intermediary brain stem midline raphé neurons. Arrays of microelectrodes were used to record sets of spike trains from a total of 145 PRG, 282 VRC, and 340 midline neurons in 11 decerebrate, vagotomized, neuromuscularly blocked, ventilated cats. Spike trains of 13,843 pairs of neurons that included at least one raphé cell were screened for respiratory modulation and short-time scale correlations. Significant correlogram features were detected in 7.2% of raphé-raphé (291/4,021), 4.3% of VRC-raphé (292/6,755), and 4.0% of the PRG-raphé (124/3,067) neuron pairs. Central peaks indicative of shared influences were the most common feature in correlations between pairs of raphé neurons, whereas correlated raphé-PRG and raphé-VRC neuron pairs displayed predominantly offset peaks and troughs, features suggesting a paucisynaptic influence of one neuron on the other. Overall, offset correlogram features provided evidence for 33 VRC-to-raphé-to-PRG and 45 PRG-to-raphé-to-VRC correlational linkage chains with one or two intermediate raphé neurons. The results support a respiratory network architecture with parallel VRC-to-PRG and PRG-to-VRC links operating through intervening midline circuits, and suggest that raphé neurons contribute to the respiratory modulation of PRG neurons and shape the respiratory motor pattern through coordinated divergent actions on both the PRG and VRC.

Reconfiguration of the pontomedullary respiratory network: a computational modeling study with coordinated in vivo experiments

A large body of data suggests that the pontine respiratory group (PRG) is involved in respiratory phase-switching and the reconfiguration of the brain stem respiratory network. However, connectivity between the PRG and ventral respiratory column (VRC) in computational models has been largely ad hoc. We developed a network model with PRG-VRC connectivity inferred from coordinated in vivo experiments. Neurons were modeled in the "integrate-and-fire" style; some neurons had pacemaker properties derived from the model of Breen et al. We recapitulated earlier modeling results, including reproduction of activity profiles of different respiratory neurons and motor outputs, and their changes under different conditions (vagotomy, pontine lesions, etc.). The model also reproduced characteristic changes in neuronal and motor patterns observed in vivo during fictive cough and during hypoxia in non-rapid eye movement sleep. Our simulations suggested possible mechanisms for respiratory pattern reorganization during these behaviors. The model predicted that network- and pacemaker-generated rhythms could be co-expressed during the transition from gasping to eupnea, producing a combined "burst-ramp" pattern of phrenic discharges. To test this prediction, phrenic activity and multiple single neuron spike trains were monitored in vagotomized, decerebrate, immobilized, thoracotomized, and artificially ventilated cats during hypoxia and recovery. In most experiments, phrenic discharge patterns during recovery from hypoxia were similar to those predicted by the model. We conclude that under certain conditions, e.g., during recovery from severe brain hypoxia, components of a distributed network activity present during eupnea can be co-expressed with gasp patterns generated by a distinct, functionally "simplified" mechanism.