Neural discharge of medial geniculate body units and single semicircular canal stimulation

In curarized guinea pigs, 68 neurons of the medial geniculate body (MGB) were tested with vestibular and acoustic stimulations. Single semicircular canals were stimulated thermally. Convergence of acoustic and vestibular afferences on the same MGB unit was observed. Following stimulation of the semicircular canals, activation and inhibition of unitary discharge were recorded, inhibition being predominant, while, when clicks were delivered, bursts of activity occurred. The implications of MGB in vestibular and acoustic integration are postulated.