Single unit recording of neurons in the orbitofrontal cortex of the alert rhesus monkey was used to investigate responses to sensory stimulation. 32.4% of the neurons had visual responses that had typical latencies of 100-200 ms, and 9.4% responded to gustatory inputs. Most neurons were selective, in that they responded consistently to some stimuli such as foods or aversive objects, but not to others. In a number of cases the neurons responded selectively to particular foods or aversive stimuli. However, this high selectivity could not be explained by simple sensory features of the stimulus, since the responses of some neurons could be readily reversed if the meaning of the stimulus (i.e. whether it was food or aversive) was changed, even though its physical appearance remained identical. Further, some bimodal neurons received convergent visual and gustatory inputs, with matching selectivity for the same stimulus in both modalities, again suggesting that an explanation in terms of simple sensory features is inadequate. Neurons were also studied during the performance of tasks known to be disrupted by orbitofrontal lesions, including a go/no go visual discrimination task and its reversal. 8.6% of neurons had differential responses to the two discriminative stimuli in the task, one of which indicated that reward was available and the other saline. Reversing the meaning of the two stimuli showed that whereas some differential units were closely linked to the sensory features of the stimuli, and some to their behavioural significance, others were conditional, in that they would only respond if a particular stimulus was present, and if it was the one being currently rewarded. Other neurons had activity related to the outcome of the animal's response, with some indicating that reinforcement had been received and others, that an error had been made and that a reversal was required. Thus, neurons in the orbitofrontal cortex possess highly coded information about which stimuli are present, as well as information about the consequences of the animal's own responses. It is suggested that together they may constitute a neuronal mechanism for determining whether particular visual stimuli continue to be associated with reinforcement, as well as providing for the modification of the animal's behavioural responses to such stimuli when those responses are no longer appropriate.
Bombesin (BBS) is a tetradecapeptide originally isolated from amphibian skin1. BBS-like immunoactivity is widely distributed in mammalian gut2-5, and plasma levels have been shown to rise sharply following feeding (ref. 6 and V. Erspamer, personal communication). The physiological actions of BBS are unknown. We have previously shown that the classic gut hormone cholecystokinin (CCK) is a powerful and specific suppressor of food intake7-9. Although CCK and BBS lack common amino acid sequences, they have certain common actions on gut viscera10,11. We have now shown that BBS also suppresses food intake, and we compare its action with that of CCK.
The effect of 24-hr water deprivation and subsequent drinking on systemic fluid balance was determined in rhesus monkeys prepared with indwelling cardiac catheters. Significant intracellular and extracellular depletions, as indicated by increased plasma sodium concentrations, osmolality, and plasma protein concentrations, resulted from the deprivation An early attenuation in rehydrational drinking rate (2-4 min) was not associated with changes in systemic fluid balance, which suggests presystemic influences on behavior at this time When drinking terminated (10 min), however, plasma dilution was significant. In experiments in which monkeys were sham drinking (open gastric cannula), water but not isotonic saline infusions, given through an intestinal cannula, reduced drinking rate and produced significant plasma dilution Intravenous water infusions reduced drinking to only a comparable extent despite more rapid and substantial plasma dilution. Thus, systemic absorption does not account entirely for the effect ol intestinal water infusions on drinking It is concluded that stimulation of mechanisms both presystemically (within the intestine or the hepatic portal circulation) and systemically is important in the control and termination of rehydrational drinking in this species.
Rhesus monkeys prepared with chronic cannulae implanted in the stomach and duodenum were water deprived for 22.5 hr. With both cannulae closed, a mean of 137 ml was drunk within a 60-min period. When ingested water drained freely from an open gastric cannula, continuous drinking far in excess (878 ml mean intake) of normal occurred. Sham drinking also exceeded (634 ml mean intake) normal when ingested water drained through an open duodenal cannula. This pattern of continuous sham drinking indicates that oropharyngeal stimulation is not sufficient alone, or together with the passage of water through the stomach and the initial part of the duodenum, to terminate drinking. Duodenal infusions of water (25-100 ml) slowed or stopped gastric sham drinking in a dose-dependent fashion, but equivalent infusions of isotonic saline were without effect. Thus, pre-or postabsorptive signals at or beyond the level of the intestine distal to the site of the duodenal cannula are probably important for the termination of drinking in the rhesus monkey
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