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Related Experiment Videos

Cortical commands in active touch.

Michael Brecht1

  • 1Erasmus MC, Universiy Medical Center Rotterdam, Department of Neuroscience, Dr. Molewaterplein 50, 3015 Dr Rotterdam, The Netherlands.

Novartis Foundation Symposium
|May 3, 2006
PubMed
Summary
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Cortical neurons exhibit widespread subthreshold activity and sparse action potentials (APs). Few APs precisely control rodent whisker movements, revealing efficient neural computation in active touch processing.

Area of Science:

  • Neuroscience
  • Computational Neuroscience

Background:

  • The neocortex's computations depend on neuronal activity composition.
  • Understanding cortical processing is key to deciphering brain function.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate quantitative aspects of cortical activity.
  • To explore modes of cortical processing during active touch in rodents.

Main Methods:

  • In vivo whole-cell recordings in rodent somatosensory cortex.
  • Intracellular stimulation of rat whisker motor cortex neurons.

Main Results:

  • Widespread subthreshold activity and sparse action potential (AP) activity observed in the somatosensory cortex.
  • Neurons are suppressed during whisking or activated by efference copy signals.

Related Experiment Videos

  • Individual cortical neurons can evoke precise sequences of whisker movements.

    • Conclusions:

    • Few cortical APs are sufficient for precise motor control.
    • Rodent active touch processing relies on sparse, specific AP activity amidst widespread subthreshold activity.