[EFFECT OF CORTICAL APPLICATION OF RIBONUCLEASE UPON HIGHER NERVOUS ACTIVITY IN PIGEONS].
摘要
In the present work the effect of cortical application of ribonuclease on the higher nervous activity and on the RNA content of the cortical nerve cells was investigated. Two or three days after the cortical application of 10—15μg of ribonuclease on each hemisphere the conditioned reflexes disappeared, but the animal was still able to perform the unconditioned food reflex, though with difficulty. About two weeks after the application the conditioned reflexes began to reappear. When the dosage of application was increased (20—25 μg for each side), the changes of the conditioned reflex activity and behavior became more severe. The conditioned reflexes disappeared entirely. The animal was not only less active, but also unable to fly and to pick grain. However, under good care, the animal could recover in due time. The changes of RNA content in nerve cells after the application of ribonuclease in different dosages were studied with the methyl green-pyronin method on the untrained pigeons. On the 2nd day after the application of ribonuclease the amount of RNA in the treated nerve cells showed a slight decrease. Very significant decrease of RNA was found on the 4th day. On the 7th day the RNA content began to show recovery, and on the 9th day it returned almost to the normal level. It is remarkable that the behavior of the animals also became normal 9—10 days after the application of ribonuclease. The conditioned refelxes, however, were restored much later. The method of local functional inactivation of the cerebral cortex used in the present investigation was discussed and recommended for the study of the higher nervous activity in animals.