The rat spinal cord slice: Its use in generating pharmacological evidence for cholinergic transmission using the α7 subtype of nicotinic receptors in the central autonomic nucleus

By means of the patch clamp technique, in its whole cell configuration, and by the use of various pharmacological tools, we show here that lamina X neurons of the central autonomic nucleus express functional α7 nicotinic receptors which are located postsynaptically on SPNs where they are involved in a fast cholinergic transmission. Thus, this in vitro preparation is useful to study the mechanisms and the pharmacology of viscero-autonomic reflexes.