Membrane potential correlates of sensory perception in mouse barrel cortex

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Sensory Perception
• Cortical Processing

Background:

• Understanding the neural basis of sensory perception is crucial.
• The cellular mechanisms linking neocortical activity to subjective percepts are not well understood.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the cellular mechanisms underlying sensory perception in the primary somatosensory cortex.
• To determine the causal role of barrel cortex activity in tactile perception.

Main Methods:

• Mice were trained to detect whisker stimuli and report perception via licking.
• Pharmacological inactivation and optogenetic stimulation were used to probe causal roles.
• Whole-cell recordings were performed on barrel cortex neurons.

Main Results:

• Primary somatosensory barrel cortex activity causally influences sensory perception.
• Neuron membrane potentials correlate with sensory perception.
• Early sensory responses (<50 ms) reliably encode stimuli, while later activity (50-400 ms) is associated with subjective percept formation.
• Late excitation plays a causal role in perception.

Conclusions:

• Sensory perception involves dynamic processing in the somatosensory cortex.
• An early, reliable sensory response is followed by later activity that drives subjective percepts.
• Cortical state influences sensory responses but does not preclude task performance.