ABSTRACT
Investigators using anatomical, electrophysiological, and biophysical techniques have found that the rostral nucleus tractus solitarius (rNTS) is morphologically and functionally complex. More analyses of Golgi-stained material of the gustatory zone of the rat and hamster rNTS show that it contains at least severalneuron types. Ionic channel blockers have been used to characterize the conductances involved in the intrinsic firing properties of rNTS neurons. Using immunochemical staining methods combined with neural tracing experiments, Lasiter and Kachele showed the ovoid neurons of the rNTS to be γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA)-ergic interneurons. The anatomical data on synaptic connections, neuron types, projection patterns, as well as information on neuropharmacology, has been combined to generate a circuit diagram of the rNTS. Excitation of the GABA ergic interneurons inhibits both the multipolar and elongate neurons modulating transmission of sensory information via GABA receptors.
