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Related Concept Videos

Neuronal Communication01:28

Neuronal Communication

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Neurons, the fundamental units of the brain and nervous system, communicate through complex electrochemical signals that underpin all cognitive and bodily functions. This communication is primarily facilitated by a process involving the generation and propagation of an action potential along the axon of the neuron. When the internal electrical charge of a neuron surpasses a certain threshold, an action potential is triggered. This rapid change in voltage travels swiftly along the axon to the...
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Neural circuits and neuronal pools are two of the main structures found in the nervous system. Neural circuits are networks of neurons that work together to carry out a specific task or process. They consist of interconnected neurons and glial cells, which provide structural and metabolic support.
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Neurons, the fundamental units of the brain and nervous system, function as the primary transmitters of information throughout the body. Their ability to communicate through electrical and chemical signals is vital for every bodily function, from regulating the heartbeat to processing complex thoughts. Each neuron has three main components: the cell body (soma), dendrites, and an axon, each specialized to facilitate swift and efficient neural communication.
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The Synapse02:47

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Neurons communicate with one another by passing on their electrical signals to other neurons. A synapse is the location where two neurons meet to exchange signals. At the synapse, the neuron that sends the signal is called the presynaptic cell, while the neuron that receives the message is called the postsynaptic cell. Note that most neurons can be both presynaptic and postsynaptic, as they both transmit and receive information.
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Synaptic Signaling01:12

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Neurons communicate at synapses, or junctions, to excite or inhibit the activity of other neurons or target cells, such as muscles. Synapses may be chemical or electrical.
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The propagation of an action potential refers to the process by which a nerve impulse, or "action potential," travels along a neuron.
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Mapping Cortical Dynamics Using Simultaneous MEG/EEG and Anatomically-constrained Minimum-norm Estimates: an Auditory Attention Example
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Attention improves information flow between neuronal populations without changing the communication subspace.

Ramanujan Srinath1, Douglas A Ruff1, Marlene R Cohen1

  • 1Department of Neuroscience and Center for the Neural Basis of Cognition, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA.

Current Biology : CB
|October 26, 2021
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Summary

Visual attention enhances communication between sensory and decision-making neurons. This flexible information routing improves how brain areas coordinate behavior, even without changing neural noise correlations.

Keywords:
communication subspacefunctional communicationspatial attentionvisual representations

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Area of Science:

  • Neuroscience
  • Cognitive Science
  • Computational Neuroscience

Background:

  • Visual attention modulates the influence of visual stimuli on behavior.
  • Flexible information sharing is suggested between visual cortex and decision-making neurons.
  • Understanding the neural mechanisms of this flexible routing is crucial.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the neural basis of flexible information routing under attention.
  • To analyze neural activity in the medial temporal area (MT) and superior colliculus (SC).
  • To examine how spatial attention affects communication between visual and oculomotor neurons.

Main Methods:

  • Recorded population activity of MT visual neurons and SC oculomotor neurons in rhesus monkeys.
  • Monkeys switched spatial attention between different locations.
  • Analyzed inter-areal communication efficacy by predicting population activity between MT and SC.

Main Results:

  • Attention increased the efficacy of visuomotor communication between MT and SC populations.
  • Trial-to-trial variability in SC activity was better predicted by MT activity (and vice versa) when attention was focused on their shared receptive fields.
  • This improved communication was not explained by changes in shared subspace dimensionality or noise correlations.

Conclusions:

  • Attention enhances information flow between sensory (MT) and decision-related (SC) neural populations.
  • The findings reveal a mechanism for flexible information routing in the brain.
  • Provides a foundation for further research into attention's role in sensory-decision neuron communication.