Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Experiment Videos

Cortex is driven by weak but synchronously active thalamocortical synapses.

Randy M Bruno1, Bert Sakmann

  • 1Department of Cell Physiology, Max Planck Institute for Medical Research, Jahnstrasse 29, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany. bruno@mpimf-heidelberg.mpg.de

Science (New York, N.Y.)
|June 17, 2006
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Related Concept Videos

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by
Same author

Thalamic activation of the visual cortex at the single-synapse level.

Science (New York, N.Y.)·2026
Same author

Morphoelectric properties of inhibitory neurons shift gradually and regardless of cell type along the depth of the cerebral cortex.

bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology·2026
Same author

Amyloid β-dependent neuronal silencing through synaptic decoupling.

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America·2025
Same author

Learning enhances behaviorally relevant representations in apical dendrites.

eLife·2024
Same author

Attentional modulation of secondary somatosensory and visual thalamus of mice.

eLife·2024
Same author

Stability of cross-sensory input to primary somatosensory cortex across experience.

Neuron·2024
Same journal

Erratum for the Research Article "Detecting supramolecular organic nanoparticles during heat wave".

Science (New York, N.Y.)·2026
Same journal

Local signals, systemic decline.

Science (New York, N.Y.)·2026
Same journal

The mechanics of liver regeneration.

Science (New York, N.Y.)·2026
Same journal

Computing in a memory with physics.

Science (New York, N.Y.)·2026
Same journal

Retraction.

Science (New York, N.Y.)·2026
Same journal

Making time.

Science (New York, N.Y.)·2026
See all related articles

Thalamocortical synapses have low efficacy, contrary to expectations. However, numerous and synchronous inputs allow thalamic signals alone to activate the cortex without intracortical amplification.

Area of Science:

  • Neuroscience
  • Sensory processing
  • Cortical circuits

Background:

  • The thalamocortical projection is crucial for sensory information processing in the neocortex.
  • Despite its importance, thalamocortical axons constitute only about 15% of cortical synapses.
  • The mechanism by which this pathway achieves its powerful influence remains unclear, with hypotheses including high-efficacy synapses or intracortical amplification.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the efficacy of individual thalamocortical synapses.
  • To determine the role of intracortical amplification in thalamocortical pathway function.
  • To elucidate the mechanism of cortical activation by thalamic input.

Main Methods:

  • In vivo electrophysiological recordings in rat somatosensory cortex.

Related Experiment Videos

  • Measurement of excitatory postsynaptic potentials (EPSPs) evoked by single synaptic connections.
  • Analysis of synaptic efficacy and convergence of inputs.

    • Main Results:

    • Thalamocortical synapses were found to have low efficacy.
    • Despite low individual synapse efficacy, convergent thalamic inputs are numerous and synchronous.
    • Intracortical amplification within layer 4 is not required for effective cortical activation.

    Conclusions:

    • Thalamocortical pathway effectiveness relies on the convergence and synchrony of inputs, not high-efficacy synapses.
    • Thalamic input alone is sufficient to drive cortical activation.
    • This challenges previous assumptions about the necessity of intracortical amplification for sensory processing.