On the distribution of information from muscle spindles in the spinal cord; how much does it depend on random factors?

Abstract

Information forwarded by individual muscle spindles is modulated by the dynamic and static gamma motoneurons in a differentiated way, depending on the coupling between the fusimotor neurons and the various intrafusal muscle fibres. Further modulation of this information at the level of spinal neurons is also differentiated because connections between individual muscle spindles and their spinal target cells are quite variable. This review illustrates this variability with respect to the spinal trajectory of muscle spindle primary afferents and the distribution of their synaptic contacts on motoneurons and other spinal neurons. It also discusses some of the consequences of this variability for the processing of information from proprioceptors.