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Related Experiment Videos

Vibrissal roughness discrimination is barrelcortex-dependent.

E Guic-Robles1, W M Jenkins, H Bravo

  • 1Department of Psychology, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Santiago.

Behavioural Brain Research
|June 8, 1992
PubMed
Summary

The posterior medial barrel subfield (PMBSF) is crucial for rats to discriminate textures using their whiskers. Without this brain region, rats cannot perform tactile tasks, but can if they use their paws.

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Area of Science:

  • Neuroscience
  • Sensory systems
  • Somatosensation

Background:

  • Rats exhibit high performance in complex roughness discrimination tasks using vibrissal inputs.
  • The posterior medial barrel subfield (PMBSF) is a key neocortical area involved in processing vibrissal information.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the contribution of the PMBSF to complex roughness discrimination mediated by vibrissal inputs.
  • To determine the specificity of the PMBSF's role in tactile discrimination for the vibrissal system.

Main Methods:

  • Rats were trained in a two-choice roughness discrimination task.
  • The PMBSF was localized using electrophysiological recordings and bilaterally ablated.
  • Histological analysis confirmed the extent of cortical lesions.

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Main Results:

  • Rats with PMBSF lesions showed no task retention and were unable to discriminate roughness using vibrissal cues alone.
  • Rats with PMBSF lesions could relearn the task when allowed to use their forepaws for palpation.
  • The deficit in discrimination was specific to the vibrissal system, as non-vibrissal tactile information was not affected.

Conclusions:

  • The PMBSF is essential for complex tactile discrimination relying on vibrissal sensory information during active palpation.
  • The PMBSF's role is specific to the vibrissal system; it is not required for tactile discrimination using other cutaneous receptors.