Role of cortical feedback in the receptive field structure and nonlinear response properties of somatosensory thalamic neurons.

Role of cortical feedback in the receptive field structure and nonlinear response properties of somatosensory thalamic neurons. Research Abstract Details 

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Role of cortical feedback in the receptive field structure and nonlinear response properties of somatosensory thalamic neurons. Abstract Text:

A A Ghazanfar,D J Krupa,M A Nicolelis,

Previous studies have suggested that the descending pathway from the primary somatosensory (SI) cortex to the ventral posterior nucleus of the thalamus has only a mild facilitative influence over thalamic neurons. Given the large numbers of corticothalamic terminations within the rat somatosensory thalamus and their complex topography, we sought to examine the role of corticothalamic feedback in the genesis of spatiotemporal receptive fields and the integration of complex tactile stimuli in the thalamus. By combining focal cortical inactivation (produced by microinjection of the GABA(A) agonist muscimol), with chronic multielectrode recordings, we observed that feedback from the rat SI cortex has multiple influences on its primary thalamic relay, the ventral posterior medial (VPM) nucleus. Our data demonstrate that, when single-whisker stimuli were used, the elimination of cortical feedback caused significant changes in the spatiotemporal structure of the receptive fields of VPM neurons. Cortical feedback also accounted for the nonlinear summation of VPM neural responses to simultaneously stimulated whiskers, in effect "linearizing" the responses. These results argue that the integration and transmission of tactile information through VPM are strongly influenced by the state of SI cortex.

Role of cortical feedback in the receptive field structure and nonlinear response properties of somatosensory thalamic neurons. Publishing Authors By Initials

AA Ghazanfar,DJ Krupa,MA Nicolelis,

For similar animal structures: vibrissae research abstracts see: animal structures: vibrissae research

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Role of cortical feedback in the receptive field structure and nonlinear response properties of somatosensory thalamic neurons. Journal Published:

PUBLICATION TYPE: Research Support, U.S. Gov't,

Journal: Experimental brain research. Experimentelle Hirnfo

VOLUME: 141

Page Numbers: 88-100

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ISSN: 0014-4819

DAY: 15

MONTH: Nov

YEAR: 2001

Role of cortical feedback in the receptive field structure and nonlinear response properties of somatosensory thalamic neurons. Information

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LANGUAGE: eng

NlmUniqueID: 43312

Role of cortical feedback in the receptive field structure and nonlinear response properties of somatosensory thalamic neurons. Keywords Mesh Terms:

KEYWORDS: Vibrissae

MESH TERMS: physiology

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Grant and Affiliation Information for Role of cortical feedback in the receptive field structure and nonlinear response properties of somatosensory thalamic neurons.

AFFILIATION: Department of Neurobiology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC 27710, USA. asifg@tuebingen.mpg.de

Country: Germany

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MEDLINETA: Exp Brain Res

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