Comparative analysis of vestibular receptor and baroreceptor inputs to the nucleus tractus solitarius following acute hypotension in conscious rats

Abstract

Blood pressure is maintained by the interaction between the arterial baroreflexes and the vestibulo-cardiovascular reflexes during postural changes. In this study, the influence of the vestibular receptors on the maintenance of blood pressure following acute hypotension was quantitatively compared with the role of baroreceptors in terms of c-Fos protein expression in the nucleus tractus solitarius (NTS). Expression of c-Fos protein in the NTS was measured in conscious rats that had undergone bilateral labyrinthectomy (BL) and/or sinoaortic denervation (SAD). Expression of c-Fos protein increased significantly in the NTS in the sham group after sodium nitroprusside (SNP) administration. However, the BL, SAD, and SAD+BL groups showed significant decreases in c-Fos protein expression compared to that of the sham group. The SAD group showed relatively more reduction in c-Fos protein expression than the BL group, and the SAD+BL group showed the least expression among the three experimental groups. The c-Fos protein expression in the NTS following acute hypotension was localized to the caudal portions of the nuclei in the BL and SAD groups. These results suggest that the role of vestibular receptors in maintaining blood pressure following acute hypotension is less potent than that of the baroreceptors but more potent than other afferent inputs in conscious rats. In addition, afferent signals for maintaining blood pressure originating from the vestibular receptors and the baroreceptors may converge in the caudal portion of the NTS.