Receptive field properties of somatosensory callosal fibres in the monkey

The corpus callosum is the principal neocortical commissure which transmits lateralized information between the hemispheres. The aim of the present experiment was to study the receptive field properties of somatosensory callosal fibres in rhesus macaque monkeys. The callosum was approached under direct visual control and axonic responses were recorded using tungsten microelectrodes. All sensory submodalities which could be examined with the available instruments were found (light touch, medium and deep pressure, joint movement and light pinches). Most fibres had receptive fields concerned with the trunk, followed by the head, with only a few responding to stimulation of the extremities. The medial borders of the unilateral receptive fields situated on the trunk and the head extended to the midline. The results are interpreted in terms of the roles of the corpus callosum in midline fusion and interhemispheric transfer.