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Related Experiment Videos

Bilateral hand representation in the postcentral somatosensory cortex

Y Iwamura1, A Iriki, M Tanaka

  • 1Department of Physiology, Toho University School of Medicine, Tokyo, Japan.

Nature
|June 16, 1994
PubMed
Summary

Researchers discovered neurons in the macaque brain with receptive fields on both hands, challenging previous assumptions. This finding suggests interhemispheric information transfer occurs at higher processing levels.

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Area of Science:

  • Neuroscience
  • Somatosensory Cortex Research
  • Cortical Processing

Background:

  • A significant portion of the macaque somatosensory cortex is dedicated to hand representation due to its role in prehensile activity.
  • Neuronal receptive field complexity increases from somatosensory areas 3b, 1, and 2 towards the intraparietal sulcus.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the characteristics of neurons in the upper bank of the intraparietal sulcus, an area with dense callosal connections.
  • To determine if neurons in this region exhibit receptive fields beyond the contralateral hand.

Main Methods:

  • Electrophysiological recordings were conducted in the macaque somatosensory cortex and intraparietal sulcus.
  • Neuronal receptive fields were mapped to assess their representation.

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  • Lesion studies were performed on the postcentral gyrus to investigate the origin of bilateral receptive fields.

    • Main Results:

    • A substantial population of neurons with receptive fields on bilateral hands was identified in the upper bank of the intraparietal sulcus.
    • These bilateral receptive fields were absent after lesioning the contralateral postcentral gyrus.
    • The majority of these neurons displayed complex receptive fields representing multiple digits.

    Conclusions:

    • The discovery of neurons with bilateral hand representation challenges the long-held belief of contralateral-only receptive fields in this cortical zone.
    • The findings indicate that interhemispheric transfer of somatosensory information occurs at higher hierarchical processing levels within each hemisphere.