Abstract
Lesions of the ventromedial portion of the nucleus reticularis lateralis (NRL) of the medulla oblongata in the rabbit significantly and markedly reduced the pressor component of the cerebral ischemic response (CIR) without altering vasomotor tone. Use of horseradish peroxidase as an anterograde and retrograde tracer indicated that the ventromedial NRL projects to the intermediolateral cell column (IML) of the upper thoracic spinal cord. Injections of glutamate into ventromedial NRL elevated blood pressure (BP), indicating that neuronal cell bodies in this area are capable of eliciting BP elevations when stimulated. These findings suggest that cell bodies in the ventromedial NRL are capable of eliciting pressor responses during the CIR via direct projections to sympathetic preganglionic cell bodies.
