The mechanosensitivity of spinal sensory neurons following intraspinal injections of quisqualic acid in the rat

The mechanoreceptive properties of rat spinal sensory neurons were evaluated in segments adjacent to those injected with the excitatory amino acid agonist quisqualic acid. Following survival periods of 7-36 days cells recorded in quisqualate injected animals had an increased level of background activity, increased sensitivity to mechanical stimuli, and an increase in the duration of afterdischarge responses. It is suggested that a central mechanism that alters the functional state of neurons may be responsible for the sensory abnormalities, e.g. allodynia and hyperalgesia, that occur following excitotoxic induced cell death associated with ischemic and traumatic spinal cord injury.