University of SaskatchewanHARVEST
  • Login
  • Submit Your Work
  • About
    • About HARVEST
    • Guidelines
    • Browse
      • All of HARVEST
      • Communities & Collections
      • By Issue Date
      • Authors
      • Titles
      • Subjects
      • This Collection
      • By Issue Date
      • Authors
      • Titles
      • Subjects
    • My Account
      • Login
      JavaScript is disabled for your browser. Some features of this site may not work without it.
      View Item 
      • HARVEST
      • Electronic Theses and Dissertations
      • Graduate Theses and Dissertations
      • View Item
      • HARVEST
      • Electronic Theses and Dissertations
      • Graduate Theses and Dissertations
      • View Item

      Sensorimotor behaviour in rats after lesions of dorsal spinal pathways

      Thumbnail
      View/Open
      Thesis.pdf (5.344Mb)
      Date
      2008
      Author
      Kanagal, Srikanth Gopinath
      Type
      Thesis
      Degree Level
      Doctoral
      Metadata
      Show full item record
      Abstract
      To investigate the roles of different dorsal spinal pathways in controlling movements in rats, I performed lesions of specific spinal pathways and measured the behaviour abilities of rats using different sensorimotor behavioural tests. The first experiment was designed to understand the contribution of sensory pathways traveling in the dorsal funiculus during locomotion and skilled movements using sensitive behavioural tests. I demonstrated that ascending sensory fibers play an important role during overground locomotion and contribute to skilled forelimb movements. The second experiment compared the differences in sensorimotor abilities caused by dorsal funicular lesions performed at two different levels of rat spinal cord. My results showed that the pathways present in the cervical and thoracic dorsal funiculus exert different functional effects over control of limb movement during locomotion. The third experiment investigated the compensatory potential of dorsal funicular pathways after dorsolateral funicular injuries in rats. My results showed that dorsal funicular pathways do not compensate for loss of dorsolateral pathways during the execution of locomotor tasks, though there is indirect evidence that rats with dorsolateral funicular lesions might rely more on ascending sensory pathways in the dorsolateral funiculus during skilled forelimb movements. Finally, the fourth experiment was designed to investigate the compensation from dorsolateral funicular pathways after injuries to pyramidal tract in rats. I demonstrated that pathways running in the spinal dorsolateral funiculus do provide compensatory input to spinal circuitry to maintain skilled reaching abilities after lesions of the pyramidal tract but these same pathways do not appear to compensate during either overground locomotion or skilled locomotion. Thus, this compensatory response is task-specific. These results highlight the fact that behavioural context determines the nature of compensation from spared pathways after spinal cord injuries.
      Degree
      Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)
      Department
      Veterinary Biomedical Sciences
      Program
      Veterinary Biomedical Sciences
      Supervisor
      Muir, Gillian D.
      Committee
      Magnuson, David S.K.; Janz, David M.; Hiebert, Linda M.; Doucette, J. Ronald; Singh, Baljit
      Copyright Date
      2008
      URI
      http://hdl.handle.net/10388/etd-08282008-144457
      Subject
      Skilled forepaw usage
      rat models for partial spinal cord injury
      Task specific compensation
      Compensation
      Dorsolateral funiculus
      Rubrospinal tract
      Deficits
      Dorsal funiculus
      Single pellet reaching
      Ascending sensory pathways
      Corticospinal tract
      Pyramidal tract
      Rats
      Spinal cord injury
      Behaviour
      Dorsal spinal pathways
      Ground reaction forces
      Overground locomotion
      Horizontal ladder
      Skilled locomotion
      Collections
      • Graduate Theses and Dissertations
      University of Saskatchewan

      University Library

      © University of Saskatchewan
      Contact Us | Disclaimer | Privacy