Resting Saliva of Men as a Reflex

Abstract

This chapter discusses experimental studies focusing on resting saliva of humans as a reflex. Artificial conditioned reflexes, positive, as well as negative, can be established by Pavlov's method in humans in the same way as in dogs, even though humans have resting saliva. The resting saliva must be a reflex saliva, of which the receptor stimulation is a special mechanical stimulus due to the attachment of a suction cup, and of which the reflex center was situated at the gyrus coronarius in the cerebral cortex of dogs. Calculation of the amount of established conditioned saliva can be obtained by subtracting the resting one measured before and after the experiments. The positive, as well as negative, conditioned salivary reflex in humans could be established in the same way as in dogs. Intravenously injected vitamin B 1 augmented the positive conditioned saliva and reduced the negative one; on the contrary, γ-amino-β-hydroxy-butyric acid (GABOB) and vitamin B 6 reduced the positivity and enhanced the negativity in the conditioned salivary reflex. It is concluded that the inhibition in the conditioned reflexes is due to the increasing inhibitory chemical transmitter in the synapse of nerve cells concerned in the formation of the conditioned reflexes. The increase in the chemical transmitters should be due to the enhanced activities of enzyme systems at the site of synapses.