We determined the activity of neurones within the nucleus of the solitary tract (NTS) following stimulation of the cornea and assessed whether this input affected the processing of baroreceptor and peripheral chemoreceptor inputs. In an in situ, un-anaesthetised decerebrate working heart-brainstem preparation of rat, noxious mechanical or electrical stimulation was applied to the cornea and extracellular single unit recordings made from NTS neurones. Cornea nociceptors stimulation evoked bradycardia and an increase in cycle length of phrenic nerve discharge. Of 90 NTS neurones with ongoing activity, corneal stimulation excited 51 and depressed 39. There was a high degree of convergence to these NTS neurones from either baroreceptors or chemoreceptors. The excitatory synaptic response in 12 of 19 baroreceptive and 10 of 15 chemoreceptive neurones was attenuated significantly during concomitant electrical stimulation of the cornea. This inhibition was GABA_A receptor mediated being blocked by pressure ejection of bicuculline. Thus, the NTS integrates information from corneal receptors, some of which converges onto neurones mediating reflexes from baroreceptors and chemoreceptors to inhibit these inputs.