scholarly journals Spatiotemporal receptive fields of barrel cortex revealed by reverse correlation of synaptic input

2014 ◽  
Vol 17 (6) ◽  
pp. 866-875 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alejandro Ramirez ◽  
Eftychios A Pnevmatikakis ◽  
Josh Merel ◽  
Liam Paninski ◽  
Kenneth D Miller ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Synaptic Input ◽  
Barrel Cortex ◽  
Receptive Fields ◽  
Reverse Correlation ◽  
Spatiotemporal Receptive Fields

Spatiotemporal receptive fields: a dynamical model derived from cortical architectonics

1986 ◽  
Vol 226 (1245) ◽  
pp. 421-444 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Cortical Neurons ◽  
Receptive Fields ◽  
Pyramidal Cells ◽  
Tuning Curves ◽  
Cell Responses ◽  
Intrinsic Connectivity ◽  
Output System ◽  
Spatiotemporal Receptive Fields ◽  
External Connections ◽  
Insight Into

We assume that the mammalian neocortex is built up out of some six layers which differ in their morphology and their external connections. Intrinsic connectivity is largely excitatory, leading to a considerable amount of positive feedback. The majority of cortical neurons can be divided into two main classes: the pyramidal cells, which are said to be excitatory, and local cells (most notably the non-spiny stellate cells), which are said to be inhibitory. The form of the dendritic and axonal arborizations of both groups is discussed in detail. This results in a simplified model of the cortex as a stack of six layers with mutual connections determined by the principles of fibre anatomy. This stack can be treated as a multi-input-multi-output system by means of the linear systems theory of homogeneous layers. The detailed equations for the simulation are derived in the Appendix. The results of the simulations show that the temporal and spatial behaviour of an excitation distribution cannot be treated separately. Further, they indicate specific processing in the different layers and some independence from details of wiring. Finally, the simulation results are applied to the theory of visual receptive fields. This yields some insight into the mechanisms possibly underlying hypercomplexity, putative nonlinearities, lateral inhibition, oscillating cell responses, and velocity-dependent tuning curves.

Development of spatiotemporal receptive fields of simple cells: I. Model formulation

1997 ◽  
Vol 77 (6) ◽  
pp. 453-461 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. Wimbauer ◽  
O.G. Wenisch ◽  
K.D. Miller ◽  
J.L. van Hemmen
Keyword(s):  
Receptive Fields ◽  
Model Formulation ◽  
Simple Cells ◽  
Spatiotemporal Receptive Fields

Spatial structure of multiwhisker receptive fields in the barrel cortex is stimulus dependent

2011 ◽  
Vol 106 (2) ◽  
pp. 986-998 ◽  
Author(s):  
Julie Le Cam ◽  
Luc Estebanez ◽  
Vincent Jacob ◽  
Daniel E. Shulz
Keyword(s):  
Spatial Structure ◽  
Barrel Cortex ◽  
Center Of Mass ◽  
Receptive Fields ◽  
Intrinsic Property ◽  
Spatial Separation ◽  
Cortical Layer ◽  
Trigeminal System ◽  
Response Latencies ◽  
Receptive Field Organization

The tactile sensations mediated by the whisker-trigeminal system allow rodents to efficiently detect and discriminate objects. These capabilities rely strongly on the temporal and spatial structure of whisker deflections. Subthreshold but also spiking receptive fields in the barrel cortex encompass a large number of vibrissae, and it seems likely that the functional properties of these multiwhisker receptive fields reflect the multiple-whisker interactions encountered by the animal during exploration of its environment. The aim of this study was to examine the dependence of the spatial structure of cortical receptive fields on stimulus parameters. Using a newly developed 24-whisker stimulation matrix, we applied a forward correlation analysis of spiking activity to randomized whisker deflections (sparse noise) to characterize the receptive fields that result from caudal and rostral directions of whisker deflection. We observed that the functionally determined principal whisker, the whisker eliciting the strongest response with the shortest latency, differed according to the direction of whisker deflection. Thus, for a given neuron, maximal responses to opposite directions of whisker deflections could be spatially separated. This spatial separation resulted in a displacement of the center of mass between the rostral and caudal subfields and was accompanied by differences between response latencies in rostral and caudal directions of whisker deflection. Such direction-dependent receptive field organization was observed in every cortical layer. We conclude that the spatial structure of receptive fields in the barrel cortex is not an intrinsic property of the neuron but depends on the properties of sensory input.

Thalamocortical Specificity and the Synthesis of Sensory Cortical Receptive Fields

2005 ◽  
Vol 94 (1) ◽  
pp. 26-32 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jose-Manuel Alonso ◽  
Harvey A. Swadlow
Keyword(s):  
Visual Cortex ◽  
Barrel Cortex ◽  
Receptive Fields ◽  
High Specificity ◽  
Inhibitory Neurons ◽  
Simple Cells ◽  
Layer 4 ◽  
Different Response ◽  
Cortical Receptive Fields ◽  
Visual Cortical

A persistent and fundamental question in sensory cortical physiology concerns the manner in which receptive fields of layer-4 neurons are synthesized from their thalamic inputs. According to a hierarchical model proposed more than 40 years ago, simple receptive fields in layer 4 of primary visual cortex originate from the convergence of highly specific thalamocortical inputs (e.g., geniculate inputs with on-center receptive fields overlap the on subregions of layer 4 simple cells). Here, we summarize studies in the visual cortex that provide support for this high specificity of thalamic input to visual cortical simple cells. In addition, we review studies of GABAergic interneurons in the somatosensory “barrel” cortex with receptive fields that are generated by a very different mechanism: the nonspecific convergence of thalamic inputs with different response properties. We hypothesize that these 2 modes of thalamocortical connectivity onto subpopulations of excitatory and inhibitory neurons constitute a general feature of sensory neocortex and account for much of the diversity seen in layer-4 receptive fields.

Receptive-field maps of correlated discharge between pairs of neurons in the cat's visual cortex

1994 ◽  
Vol 71 (1) ◽  
pp. 330-346 ◽  
Author(s):  
G. M. Ghose ◽  
I. Ohzawa ◽  
R. D. Freeman
Keyword(s):  
Visual Cortex ◽  
Receptive Field ◽  
Correlation Analysis ◽  
Random Sequence ◽  
Receptive Fields ◽  
Simple Cell ◽  
Reverse Correlation ◽  
Sinusoidal Gratings ◽  
Reverse Correlation Analysis ◽  
Correlation Procedure

1. To investigate the functional significance of temporally correlated discharge between nearby cells in the visual cortex, we obtained receptive-field maps of correlated discharge for 68 cell pairs in kittens and cats. Discharge from cell pairs was measured by a single extracellular electrode. A reverse correlation procedure was used to relate neural discharge to particular stimuli within a random sequence of briefly flashed bright and dark bars. Bicellular receptive fields (BRFs) were mapped by applying reverse correlation to approximately synchronous discharge from two cells. Unicellular receptive fields (URFs) were simultaneously mapped by separately applying reverse correlation to the discharge of each cell. 2. The receptive fields of the two neurons within each pair were initially studied by varying the orientation and spatial frequency of drifting sinusoidal gratings. After these tests a random sequence of appropriately oriented bars was used to evoke discharge suitable for reverse correlation analysis. For most cell pairs, the temporal pattern or strength of correlated discharge produced by such stimulation is different from that observed with stimulation by sinusoidal gratings. This indicates that visually evoked correlated discharge between nearby cells is stimulus dependent. 3. BRFs were classified according to their pattern of spatial sensitivity into three groups that roughly correspond to the single-cell receptive-field types of the lateral geniculate nucleus (LGN; center-surround) and visual cortex (simple and complex). These classifications were compared with the receptive-field types of the single cells within each pair. LGN-type and simple-type BRFs were only seen for pairs in which at least one of the cells was simple. Conversely, complex-type BRFs were only seen for pairs in which at least one of the cells was complex. 4. Because the reverse correlation procedure can be used to characterize the spatiotemporal receptive-field structure of simple cells, we were able to compare both the spatial and temporal properties associated with the URFs and BRFs of simple cell pairs. The spatiotemporal structure of the BRF of a simple-cell pair can largely be predicted on the basis of the two URFs. Although this prediction suggests the possibility that BRFs are stimulus artifacts, a shuffle procedure, in which multiple repetitions of random sequences were presented, verifies the neural origin of BRFs. BRFs emerge from specific neural pathways and are not simply a consequence of unicellular response preferences. 5. Five measures were derived from the reverse correlation analysis of simple-cell receptive fields: width, duration, optimal spatial and temporal frequency, and optimal velocity.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)

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