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Juxtasomal Biocytin Labeling to Study the Structure-function Relationship of Individual Cortical Neurons

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Gap junctions mediate large-scale Turing structures in a mean-field cortex driven by subcortical noise.

Moira L Steyn-Ross¹, D A Steyn-Ross, M T Wilson

¹Department of Engineering, Private Bag 3105, University of Waikato, Hamilton 3240, New Zealand. msr@waikato.ac.nz

Physical Review. E, Statistical, Nonlinear, and Soft Matter Physics

|August 7, 2007

Summary

This study models brain activity, revealing that gap junctions between inhibitory neurons can create spatial patterns similar to those seen in brain imaging. These patterns may explain synchronized brain rhythms.

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Area of Science:

Neuroscience
Computational Neuroscience
Theoretical Neuroscience

Background:

Linking cognition to brain activity patterns is a major neuroscience challenge.
Brain function emerges from interacting neuronal populations, not single neurons.
Mean-field cortical models study large-scale brain behavior but often omit gap-junction connectivity.

Purpose of the Study:

To incorporate gap-junction connectivity into mean-field cortical models.
To investigate the role of diffusive coupling strength (D2) from inhibitory neuron gap junctions.
To explore how this connectivity influences large-scale brain activity patterns.

Main Methods:

Derived an expression for D2 using mean-field arguments.
Estimated D2 upper limit using neurophysiological data (Fukuda, 2006).
Applied linear stability analysis and computer simulations to an augmented cortical model.

Main Results:

Estimated D2 is near the critical value for destabilizing the steady state.
Simulations show D2 > critical value leads to spontaneous Turing structures.
These structures exhibit centimeter-scale spatial patterns of high and low activity.

Conclusions:

Gap-junctions between inhibitory neurons can generate large-scale spatial patterns in brain activity.
These patterns align with BOLD signals and may underlie gamma-band synchrony.
The model provides a framework for understanding brain activity patterns and cognition.