New display of the timing and firing frequency of single motor units

The neural control of important rhythmical processes such as breathing and locomotion is complex. It is often necessary to depict the activity of motor (or other) units throughout the cycles. We describe and illustrate a novel method that displays visually seven key variables in a single figure related to the timing and frequencies of the discharge of single motor units. This time-and-frequency plot (TAFPLOT) displays the recruitment time, time of peak discharge frequency and derecruitment time, as well as the onset, peak, and final firing frequencies of each motor unit in a population. The frequency of any tonic firing is also displayed. Using the TAFPLOT it is easy to identify the presence or absence of coordinated activity within and between different motoneuron pools. The method is used to illustrate novel differences in the discharge behavior between populations of single motor units innervating the human diaphragm and genioglossus muscles. This new display provides a simple, qualitative and quantitative tool to study the neural control of rhythmical or repetitive motor tasks. (C) 2007 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.