Secretory Fibres in the Trigeminal Part of the Lingual Nerve to the Mandibular Salivary Gland of the Rat

Hellekant, G. and Y. Kasahara. Secretory fibres in the trigeminal pa'.rt of the lingual nerve to the mandibular salivary gland of the rat. Acta physiol. scand. 1973. 89. 198–207. The nerve supply to and the secretion from the mandibular salivary gland of the rat have been studied. It was found that a) secretory fibres are given off from the chorda‐lingual nerve on its peripheral course until it reaches the mandibular and sublingual ducts, b) secretion of saliva was observed and secretion could be evoked even when the facial portion of the chorda‐lingual nerves was cut. The flow did not stop until its trigeminal portion was also cut, c) the cessation of secretion after the trigeminal portion was cut was not the result of a loss of sensory impulses to the CNS, d) impulses could also be recorded fiorn the nerve fibres given off from the chorda‐lingual nerve to the gland after its facial portion was cut; e) electrical stimulation of the peripheral part of the trigeminal portion elicited secretion, which was generally larger than that in response to stimulation of the facial portion. Simultaneous stimulation of both portions gave the largest secretion, f) no difference between the sodium and potassium concentrations in saliva elicited by stimulation of the two nerve portions was observed. Atropine blocked the secretion caused by stimulation of any of the nerves.