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Related Experiment Videos

Septal columns in rodent barrel cortex: functional circuits for modulating whisking behavior.

Kevin D Alloway1, Mengliang Zhang, Shubhodeep Chakrabarti

  • 1Department of Neural & Behavioral Sciences, H109, Pennsylvania State University College of Medicine, Hershey Medical Center, 500 University Drive, Hershey, Pennsylvania 17033-2255, USA. kda1@psu.edu

The Journal of Comparative Neurology
|October 30, 2004
PubMed
Summary

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Septal columns in the somatosensory cortex project to the motor cortex, suggesting a distinct circuit for motor control. These findings reveal a new functional pathway in the rodent brain.

Area of Science:

  • Neuroscience
  • Somatosensory System
  • Motor Control

Background:

  • The rodent mystacial whisker system features barrel and septal compartments in the primary somatosensory (SI) cortex.
  • While barrel columns process principal whisker input, the function of septal columns remains unclear.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the functional role of septal columns in the SI cortex.
  • To determine if septal columns project to the primary motor (MI) cortex.

Main Methods:

  • Retrograde tracers were injected into the MI cortex of rodents.
  • The location of retrogradely labeled neurons in the SI cortex was analyzed relative to barrel and septal compartments.
  • Neuronal locations were plotted and superimposed onto barrel field reconstructions in tangential sections and analyzed in coronal sections.

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Main Results:

  • The majority of retrogradely labeled neurons in the extragranular layers of the SI cortex were located above or below the septal regions of layer IV.
  • Analysis of coronal sections revealed columns of labeled SI neurons aligned with the septal zones of layer IV.
  • These findings indicate a projection from septal columns to the MI cortex.

Conclusions:

  • Septal columns in the SI cortex are functionally linked to the MI cortex via projections.
  • A hypothesis is proposed that septal columns form a distinct circuit involved in motor control.
  • This circuit may transmit information to the MI cortex and other motor-related brain regions.