Coronary vasoconstrictor pathway from anterior hypothalamus includes neurons in RVLM.

We have previously identified discrete brain sites [anterior (AHA) and lateral hypothalamus, periaqueductal gray, pontine parabrachial nucleus, lateral reticular formation, and rostral ventrolateral medulla (RVLM)] in the cat, in which electrical or chemical activation produces coronary vasoconstriction. This study examines whether the most rostral (AHA) and caudal (RVLM) of these sites are connected as part of a common pathway mediating coronary vasoconstriction. In chloralose-anesthetized cats, electrical stimulation in the AHA produced maximum increases in arterial pressure (41 +/- 10%) and coronary vascular resistance (28 +/- 9%).