Commentaries on Viewpoint: Initiating inspiration outside the medulla does produce eupneic breathing. Integration of volitional and spontaneous breathing control within the brain stem.

摘要

to the editor: The Viewpoint article (3) exposes the challenge for ventilatory control systemshow is isocapnia maintained when ventilation is initiated spontaneously or by volitional or emotional stimuli? What does the pontomedullary central pattern generator (CPG) do under these different circumstances? "Cooperation" between these ventilatory modes may involve not simply termination of inspiration at a volume and time that maintain isocapnia, but also the neural structures that distribute inspiratory drive to the obligatory inspiratory motoneurons so as to ensure efficient matching between neural drive and mechanical action (1, 2).