• The Korean Journal of Physiology
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• v.26 no.2
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• pp.151-157
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• 1992

In urethane anesthetized cats, each vestibular semicircular canal nerve was electrically stimulated, and reflex responses of the cervical extensor and flexor (the splenius capitis and sternomastoid muscles) were recorded by means of electromyography. Stimulation of a unilateral (anterior, horizontal or posterior) canal nerve elicited excitation of the contralateral cervical muscles and inhibition of the ipsilateral ones; during the canal nerve stimulation, the two muscles in one side of the neck revealed synergistic responses. Based on these experimental results, we formulated a diagram showing the functional connections between the vestibular semicircular canals and the cervical muscles in the vestibulocollic reflex.

• Research in Vestibular Science
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• v.17 no.4
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• pp.134-141
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• 2018

Objectives: We aimed to study the role of vestibular input on spatial memory performance in mice that had undergone bilateral surgical labyrinthectomy, semicircular canal (SCC) occlusion and 4G hypergravity exposure. Methods: Twelve to 16 weeks old ICR mice (n=30) were used for the experiment. The experimental group divided into 3 groups. One group had undergone bilateral chemical labyrinthectomy, and the other group had performed SCC occlusion surgery, and the last group was exposed to 4G hypergravity for 2 weeks. The movement of mice was recorded using camera in Y maze which had 3 radial arms (35 cm long, 7 cm high, 10 cm wide). We counted the number of visiting arms and analyzed the information of arm selection using program we developed before and after procedure. Results: The bilateral labyrinthectomy group which semicircular canal and otolithic function was impaired showed low behavioral performance and spacial memory. The semicircular canal occlusion with $CO_2$ laser group which only semicircular canal function was impaired showed no difference in performance activity and spatial memory. However the hypergravity exposure group in which only otolithic function impaired showed spatial memory function was affected but the behavioral performance was spared. The impairment of spatial memory recovered after a few days after exposure in hypergravity group. Conclusions: This spatial memory function was affected by bilateral vestibular loss. Space-related information processing seems to be determined by otolithic organ information rather than semicircular canals. Due to otolithic function impairment, spatial learning was impaired after exposure to gravity changes in animals and this impaired performance was compensated after normal gravity exposure.

• The Korean Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology
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• v.6 no.4
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• pp.193-197
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• 2002

In spite of abundant anatomical evidences for the fiber connection between vestibular nuclei and inferior olivary (IO) complex, the transmission of vestibular information through the vestibulo- olivo-cerebellar climbing fiber pathway has not been physiologically established. The aims of the present study were to investigate whether there are IO neurons specifically responding to horizontal rotation and also in which subregions of IO complex these vestibularly-activated neurons are located. The extracellular recording was made in 68 IO neurons and responses of 46 vestibularly-activated cells were analyzed. Most of the vestibularly-activated IO neurons responded to signals of vertical rotation (roll), while a small number (13/46) of recorded cells were activated by horizontal canal signal (yaw). Regardless of yaw-sensitive or roll-sensitive, vestibular IO neurons were excited, when the animal was rotated to the side contralateral to the recording side. The gain and excitation phase were very similar to otolithic or vertical-canal responses. Histologic identification of recording sites showed that most of vestibular IO neurons were located in ${\beta}$ subnucleus. Electrical stimulation of a HSC evoked an inhibitory effect on the excitability of the ipsilateral IO neurons. These results suggest that IO neurons mainly in the ${\beta}$ subnucleus receive vestibular signals from semicircular canals and otolithic organs, encode them, and transmit vestibular information to the cerebellum.

• The Korean Journal of Physiology
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• v.21 no.1
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• pp.91-101
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• 1987

The present experiment was carried out, in the rabbit and cat, in order to explore functional interrelationship between the vestibular semicircular canals and extraocular muscles, which are involved in the vestibulooculomotor reflex as the receptor and effector organ respectively. Semicircular canals were subjected to electrical stimulation, lymphatic fluid flow or acute freezing, and responses of the extraocular muscles were recorded in terms of changes in electromyographic activity and isometric tension. Electrical stimulation of a unilateral canal elicited contraction of the superio-medial muscle group (superior oblique, superior rectus and medial rectus muscles) in the ipsilateral eye and the inferio-lateral muscle group (inferior oblique, inferior rectus and lateral rectus muscles) in the contralateral eye. Thus a simple and distinct axiom was found in the pattern of the reflex-response of the extraocular muscles. Inhibition of the unilateral canals elicited the extraocular muscle responses contrary to those observed by excitation of the canal. Based on the present experimental results, it was demonstrated that the functional interrelations between the semicircular canals and extraocular muscles are rather equivalent in the frontal eyed cats (with binocular vision) and lateral eyed rabbits (with monocular vision). Therefore the previous thesis that the vestibuloocular relations vary from species to species awaits experimental reevaluation.

• The Korean Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology
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• v.7 no.4
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• pp.193-198
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• 2003

In the present study, the vestibularly evoked activity of inferior olive (IO) neurons was examined to investigate the vertical vestibular information transmitted through the vestibulo-olivo-cerebellar climbing fiber pathway. The extracellular recording was made in 74 neurons of the IO of cats, while animals were sinusoidally rotated. Most of vestibularly activated IO neurons responded to the vertical rotation (roll) test and were found in or near the ${\beta}$ subnuclei $(IO{\beta})$. The vestibular IO neurons were activated, when the animal was rotated to the side contralateral to the recording site. In contrast to the observation that the gain of responses of yaw sensitive cells (YSC) was not changed by the rotation frequency, that of the roll-sensitive cells (RSC) decreased as the rotation frequency was increased. Regardless of RSC or HSC, IO neurons showed the tendency of phase-lag in their responses. The alternating excitatory and inhibitory phases of responses of RSC were dependent on the direction of head orientation, the characteristics of which are the null response plane (NRP) and the optimal response plane (ORP). The analysis based on the NRP of RSC showed that vestibular inputs from the ipsilateral anterior semicircular canal induced the NRP of the RSC response at about 45 degree counterclockwise to the longitudinal axis of the animal, and that those inputs were distributed to RSC in the rostral part of $IO{\beta}$. On the other hand, those from the posterior semicircular canal were related with the NRP at about 45 degree clockwise and with the caudal part of the $IO{\beta}$. These results suggest that IO neurons receive and encode the vestibular information, the priority of which seems to be the vertical component of the body movement rather than the horizontal ones.

• Annals of Clinical Neurophysiology
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• v.8 no.1
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• pp.1-5
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• 2006

The head thrust maneuver is a simple bedside test of the higher frequency vestibulo-ocular reflex, which is based on Ewald's second law. It is performed by grasping the patient's head and applying a brief, small-amplitude, high-acceleration head turn, first to one side and then to the other. The patient fixates on the examiner's nose and the examiner watches for corrective rapid eye movements (saccades), which are a sign of decreased vestibular response. The "catch-up" saccades after a head thrust in one direction indicate a peripheral vestibular lesion on that side (in the labyrinth or the $8^{th}$ nerve including the root's entry zone in the brain stem). An individual pair of vertical semicircular canals can also be stimulated by turning the head to the right or left by $45^{\circ}$ and then by rotating the head in the pitch plane relative to the body. Recent studies have suggested that assessment of individual semicircular canal function by head thrust test may provide useful information for anatomical and functional details of a variety of peripheral vestibulopathies and for predicting the prognosis of vestibular neuritis. In central vestibulopathy, the head thrust test may also be valuable sign to determine dysfunction of the central pathways from individual semicircular canals and its role for the development of diverse central nystagmus.

• The Korean Journal of Physiology
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• v.2 no.2
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• pp.75-81
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• 1968

According to recent observations of Cohen et al. the patterns of vestibular eye movements of rabbits are different from those of cats. However, the causes of such difference of the reflex eye movements in these species are not wholly explained. While the accumulated data obtained from cats appear to be established, experimental evidences in rabbits are rather meager. The author had re-examined the reflex eye movements of rabbits and attempted to find a mechanism which causes such difference in the reflex eye movements between two species. In anesthesized rabbit, unilateral individual semicircular canal nerve was stimulated selectively with a fine insulated electrode which was inserted through a hole made on the corresponding osseous canal, under a dissecting microscope. When an individual canal nerve was stimulated, the reflex movements of both eyes were observed, photographed, and recorded kymographically. Extraocular muscles were also studied to find their morphological characteristics and to correlate them with the function of the muscles. 1. At the beginning of the stimulation, both eyes moved to a specific direction depending upon the canal stimulated, and such directional eye movements were sustained during the whole course of stimulation. Amplitude of the eye movement showed graded responses to the increasing frequency of the stimulus, reaching to the maximal response at 200-300 cps. 2. Stimulation of the unilateral horizontal canal nerve caused conjugate eye movements, which was also observed in cats and other species by other investigators. 3. Stimulation of the unilateral vertical canal nerve caused a pattern of non-conjugate eye movements, which are different from those observed in cats. Such different patterns of vestibular eye movements in two different species are ascribable to the functional difference of the inferior and superior oblique muscles.

• The Korean Journal of Physiology
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• v.4 no.1
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• pp.59-67
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• 1970

In recent observations on vestibular eye movements in mammals, reported by several different workers, it was indicated that the pattern of reflex eye movement from semicircular canal nerve stimulation in rabbits was different from that observed in the other species such as cats and dogs. Observing the different anatomical features of the extraocular muscles of rabbits, Kim ascribed the different pattern of eye movement of rabbits to the functional difference of inferior and superior oblique muscles from those of other species. Present experiment was carried out to elucidate a physiological mechanism underlying in such particular pattern of reflex eye movement in rabbits. An individual canal nerve was selectively stimulated, under a dissecting microscope, by a fine electrode induced into an ampulla through a hole provided on the wall of corresponding osseous canal, and responses of the extraocular muscles were checked by recording the isotonic changes of muscle length. Following results were obtained. 1. Direct stimulation of the superior or inferior oblique muscles Produced upward or downward movement of the eye turning toward medial side respectively. 2. Stimulation of the unilateral canal nerve Produced a marked contraction of a main contracting ocular muscle and simultaneous relaxation of an antagonistic muscle in both eyes. Less potent contraction of an additional ocular muscle was observed and it appeared to augment the function of the main contracting muscle in the ipsilateral eye. 3. Stimulation of superior semicircular canal nerve caused a primary contraction of superior rectus, synergic contraction of superior oblique and relaxation of inferior rectus in ipsilateral eye. Contraction of inferior oblique and relaxation of superior oblique were observed in the contralateral eye. 4. Stimulation of lateral semicircular canal nerve produced a primary contraction of medial rectus, synergic contraction of superior oblique and relaxation of lateral rectus in the ipsilateral eye. Contraction of lateral rectus and relaxation of medial rectus were observed in the contralateral eye. 5. Stimulation of inferior semicircular canal nerve produced a primary contraction of superior oblique, synergic contraction of superior rectus and relaxation of inferior oblique in the ipsilateral eye. Contraction of. inferior rectus and relaxation of superior rectus were observed in the contralateral eye. 6. Upon stimulation of individual canal nerve, the pattern of eye movement in rabbits is different from those of cats, however, the responses of the extraocular muscles appear to be similar in two species. Therefore, it is concluded that the different Pattern of eye movement in both species are not due to the possible difference of vestibule-ocular reflex pathways but to the functional difference of superior and inferior oblique muslces.

• The Korean Journal of Physiology
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• v.8 no.2
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• pp.1-17
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• 1974

This experiment was designed to explore the specific functional interrelations between the vestibular semicircular canals and the extraocular muscles which may disclose the neural organization, connecting the vestibular canals and each ocular motor nuclei in the brain system, for vestibuloocular reflex mechanism. In urethane anesthetized rabbits, a fine wire insulated except the cut cross section of its tip was inserted into the canals closely to the ampullary receptor organs through the minute holes provided on the osseous canal wall for monopolar stimulation of each canal nerve. All extraocular muscles of both eyes were ligated and cut at their insertio, and the isometric tension and EMG responses of the extraocular muscles to the vestibular canal nerve stimulation were recorded by means of a physiographic recorder. Upon stimulation of the semicircular canal nerve, direction if the eye movement was also observed. The experimental results were as follows. 1) Single canal nerve stimulation with high frequency square waves (240 cps, 0. 1 msec) caused excitation of three extraocular muscles and inhibition of remaining three muscles in the bilateral eyes; stimulation of any canal nerve of a unilateral labyrinth caused excitation (contraction) of the superior rectus, superior oblique and medial rectus muscles and inhibition (relaxation) of the inferior rectus, inferior oblique and lateral rectos muscles in the ipsilateral eye, and it caused the opposite events in the contralateral eye. 2) By the overlapped stimulation of triple canal nerves of a unilateral labyrinth, unidirectional (excitatory or inhibitory) summation of the individual canal effects on a given extraocular muscles was demonstrated, and this indicates that three different canals of a unilateral vestibular system exert similar effect on a given extraocular muscles. 3) Based on the above experimental evidences, a simple rule by which one can define the vestibular excitatory and inhibitory input sources to all the extraocular muscles is proposed; the superior rectus, superior oblique and medial rectus muscles receive excitatory impulses from the ipsilateral vestibular canals, and the inferior rectus, inferior oblique and lateral rectus muscles from the contralateral canals; the opposite relationship applies for vestibular inhibitory impulses to the extraocular muscles. 4) According to the specific direction of the eye movements induced by the individual canal nerve stimulation, an extraocutar muscle exerting major role (a muscle of primary contraction) and two muscles of synergistic contraction could be differentiated in both eyes. 5) When these experimental results were compared to the well known observations of Cohen et al. (1964) made in the cats, extraocular muscles of primary contraction were the same but those of synergistic contraction were partially different. Moreover, the oblique muscle responses to each canal nerve excitation appeared to be all identical. However, the responnes of horizontal (medial and lateral) and vertical (superior and inferior) rectus muscles showed considerable differences. By critical analysis of these data, the author was able to locate theoretical contradictions in the observations of Cohen et al. but not in the author's results. 6) An attempt was also made to compare the functional observation of this experiment to the morphological findings of Carpenter and his associates obtained by degeneration experiments in the monkeys, and it was able to find some significant coincidence between there two works of different approach. In summary, the author has demonstrated that the well known observations of Cohen et al. on the vestibulo-ocular interrelation contain important experimental errors which can he proved by theoretical evaluation and substantiated by a series of experiments. Based on such experimental evidences, a new rule is proposed to define the interrelation between the vestibular canals and the extraocular muscles.

• Journal of IKEEE
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• v.14 no.4
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• pp.291-296
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• 2010

This paper handles, pitching and rolling posture change detection using the visual image changes due to the road slope conditions. When the moving vehicle is slanted to a direction, the objects in the visual images of the vehicle are moving to up or down and right or left. This is similar to the human's balancing behavior depending on the visual image change detection as well as the vestibular organs and semicircular canal in the ear. The proposes method shows the visual image through the camera can be used for the image information itself and for the posture change detection through the experiments.