scholarly journals Fine Detail of Neurovascular Coupling Revealed by Spatiotemporal Analysis of the Hemodynamic Response to Single Whisker Stimulation in Rat Barrel Cortex

2008 ◽  
Vol 99 (2) ◽  
pp. 787-798 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. Berwick ◽  
D. Johnston ◽  
M. Jones ◽  
J. Martindale ◽  
C. Martin ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Spatial Representation ◽  
Barrel Cortex ◽  
Spatiotemporal Analysis ◽  
Cortical Column ◽  
Spatiotemporal Resolution ◽  
Fine Detail ◽  
Whisker Stimulation ◽  
Multichannel Electrode ◽  
Neuroimaging Techniques ◽  
Stimulation Of

The spatial resolution of hemodynamic-based neuroimaging techniques, including functional magnetic resonance imaging, is limited by the degree to which neurons regulate their blood supply on a fine scale. Here we investigated the spatial detail of neurovascular events with a combination of high spatiotemporal resolution two-dimensional spectroscopic optical imaging, multichannel electrode recordings and cytochrome oxidase histology in the rodent whisker barrel field. After mechanical stimulation of a single whisker, we found two spatially distinct cortical hemodynamic responses: a transient response in the “upstream” branches of surface arteries and a later highly localized increase in blood volume centered on the activated cortical column. Although the spatial representation of this localized response exceeded that of a single “barrel,” the spread of hemodynamic activity accurately reflected the neural response in neighboring columns rather than being due to a passive “overspill.” These data confirm hemodynamics are capable of providing accurate “single-condition” maps of neural activity.

Similarity of Direction Tuning Among Responses to Stimulation of Different Whiskers in Neurons of Rat Barrel Cortex

2005 ◽  
Vol 94 (3) ◽  
pp. 2004-2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hiroyuki Kida ◽  
Satoshi Shimegi ◽  
Hiromichi Sato
Keyword(s):  
Barrel Cortex ◽  
Direction Selectivity ◽  
Specific Response ◽  
Neuronal Responses ◽  
Preferred Direction ◽  
Fast Spiking ◽  
Whisker Stimulation ◽  
Direction Tuning ◽  
Network Mechanism ◽  
Stimulation Of

Cells in the rat barrel cortex exhibit stimulus-specific response properties. To understand the network mechanism of direction selectivity in response to facial whisker deflection, we examined direction selectivity of neuronal responses to single- and multiwhisker stimulations. In the case of regular-spiking units, i.e., putative excitatory cells, direction preferences were quite similar between responses to single-whisker stimulation of the principal and adjacent whiskers. In multiwhisker stimulation at short (≤5 ms) interstimulus intervals (ISIs), response facilitation was evoked only when the whiskers were deflected to the preferred direction of the response to the single whisker stimulation. These results suggest that there are neuronal networks among cells with different whisker preferences but with a common direction preference that could be the neuronal basis of the direction-selective facilitation of the response to multiwhisker stimulation. In contrast, multiwhisker stimulation at long (≥6 ms) ISIs caused non–direction-selective suppression of the response to the second stimulus. In the case of fast-spiking units, i.e., putative inhibitory cells, poor direction selectivity was exhibited. Thus stimulus direction is represented as the direction-selective responses to the single- and multiwhisker stimulations of putative excitatory cells rather than those of putative inhibitory cells.

scholarly journals Spontaneous activity synchronizes whisker-related sensorimotor networks prior to their maturation in the developing rat cortex

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
David A. McVea ◽  
Timothy H. Murphy ◽  
Majid H. Mohajerani
Keyword(s):  
Barrel Cortex ◽  
Intracortical Microstimulation ◽  
Tight Coupling ◽  
Motor Systems ◽  
Medial Cortex ◽  
Whisker Stimulation ◽  
Developing Rat ◽  
The Brain ◽  
Postnatal Rats ◽  
Stimulation Of

AbstractA prominent feature of the cortical systems controlling the whiskers in the adult rodent is tight coupling between sensory and motor systems. Stimulation of the whiskers evokes activation of discrete motor regions of cortex shortly after activation of the sensory cortex. To explore the factors that direct the development of sensorimotor functional connectivity, we recorded spontaneous and whisker-evoked cortical activity using voltage-sensitive imaging over a large (7X7 mm) craniotomy in postnatal rats (day 5-12) under anesthesia. We found that spontaneous bursts of activity in the barrel cortex were correlated predominantly with activity in motor (anterio-medial) cortex, at ages before whisker stimulation evoked activation in this area. Intracortical microstimulation and anatomical tracing experiments confirmed there were no functional or anatomical intracortical sensorimotor connections. We interpret these results as evidence that the spontaneous patterns of activity in the cortex synchronize functionally related regions of the brain prior to their maturation.Author ContributionsD.A.M, T.H.M., and M.H.M. designed the study. D.A.M, and M.H.M performed the experiments and analyzed the data and wrote the manuscript, which all authors commented on and edited. T.H.M. and M.H.M. supervised the study.

Olfactory modulation of barrel cortex activity during active whisking and passive whisker stimulation

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anthony Renard ◽  
Evan Harrell ◽  
Brice Bathallier
Keyword(s):  
Facial Nerve ◽  
Calcium Imaging ◽  
Tactile Stimulation ◽  
Barrel Cortex ◽  
Neuronal Responses ◽  
Population Activity ◽  
Tactile Information ◽  
Large Populations ◽  
Whisker Stimulation ◽  
The Impact

Abstract Rodents depend on olfaction and touch to meet many of their fundamental needs. The joint significance of these sensory systems is underscored by an intricate coupling between sniffing and whisking. However, the impact of simultaneous olfactory and tactile inputs on sensory representations in the cortex remains elusive. To study these interactions, we recorded large populations of barrel cortex neurons using 2-photon calcium imaging in head-fixed mice during olfactory and tactile stimulation. We find that odors alter barrel cortex activity in at least two ways, first by enhancing whisking, and second by central cross-talk that persists after whisking is abolished by facial nerve sectioning. Odors can either enhance or suppress barrel cortex neuronal responses, and while odor identity can be decoded from population activity, it does not interfere with the tactile representation. Thus, barrel cortex represents olfactory information which, in the absence of learned associations, is coded independently of tactile information.

scholarly journals Infragranular barrel cortex activity is enhanced with learning

2012 ◽  
Vol 108 (5) ◽  
pp. 1278-1287 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rebekah L. Ward ◽  
Luke C. Flores ◽  
John F. Disterhoft
Keyword(s):  
Single Unit ◽  
Barrel Cortex ◽  
Eyeblink Conditioning ◽  
Sensory Cortex ◽  
Learning Criterion ◽  
Extracellular Recordings ◽  
Primary Sensory Cortex ◽  
Whisker Stimulation ◽  
Trace Eyeblink Conditioning

The barrel cortex (BC) is essential for the acquisition of whisker-signaled trace eyeblink conditioning and shows learning-related expansion of the trained barrels after the acquisition of a whisker-signaled task. Most previous research examining the role of the BC in learning has focused on anatomic changes in the layer IV representation of the cortical barrels. We studied single-unit extracellular recordings from individual neurons in layers V and VI of the BC as rabbits acquired the whisker-signaled trace eyeblink conditioning task. Neurons in layers V and VI in both conditioned and pseudoconditioned animals robustly responded to whisker stimulation, but neurons in conditioned animals showed a significant enhancement in responsiveness in concert with learning. Learning-related changes in firing rate occurred as early as the day of learning criterion within the infragranular layers of the primary sensory cortex.

scholarly journals An automated method for detection of layer activation order in information processing pathway of rat barrel cortex under mechanical whisker stimulation

2011 ◽  
Vol 196 (1) ◽  
pp. 141-150 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mufti Mahmud ◽  
Elisabetta Pasqualotto ◽  
Alessandra Bertoldo ◽  
Stefano Girardi ◽  
Marta Maschietto ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Information Processing ◽  
Barrel Cortex ◽  
Automated Method ◽  
Whisker Stimulation ◽  
Layer Activation

scholarly journals Voltage-sensitive dye imaging reveals shifting spatiotemporal spread of whisker-induced activity in rat barrel cortex

2013 ◽  
Vol 109 (9) ◽  
pp. 2382-2392 ◽  
Author(s):  
Brian R. Lustig ◽  
Robert M. Friedman ◽  
Jeremy E. Winberry ◽  
Ford F. Ebner ◽  
Anna W. Roe
Keyword(s):  
Barrel Cortex ◽  
Sensory Information ◽  
Population Level ◽  
Spatiotemporal Pattern ◽  
Voltage Sensitive Dye ◽  
Barrel Field ◽  
Spatial Shift ◽  
Response Peak ◽  
Whisker Stimulation ◽  
Spike Firing

In rats, navigating through an environment requires continuous information about objects near the head. Sensory information such as object location and surface texture are encoded by spike firing patterns of single neurons within rat barrel cortex. Although there are many studies using single-unit electrophysiology, much less is known regarding the spatiotemporal pattern of activity of populations of neurons in barrel cortex in response to whisker stimulation. To examine cortical response at the population level, we used voltage-sensitive dye (VSD) imaging to examine ensemble spatiotemporal dynamics of barrel cortex in response to stimulation of single or two adjacent whiskers in urethane-anesthetized rats. Single whisker stimulation produced a poststimulus fluorescence response peak within 12–16 ms in the barrel corresponding to the stimulated whisker (principal whisker). This fluorescence subsequently propagated throughout the barrel field, spreading anisotropically preferentially along a barrel row. After paired whisker stimulation, the VSD signal showed sublinear summation (less than the sum of 2 single whisker stimulations), consistent with previous electrophysiological and imaging studies. Surprisingly, we observed a spatial shift in the center of activation occurring over a 10- to 20-ms period with shift magnitudes of 1–2 barrels. This shift occurred predominantly in the posteromedial direction within the barrel field. Our data thus reveal previously unreported spatiotemporal patterns of barrel cortex activation. We suggest that this nontopographical shift is consistent with known functional and anatomic asymmetries in barrel cortex and that it may provide an important insight for understanding barrel field activation during whisking behavior.

Atorvastatin and whisker stimulation synergistically enhance angiogenesis in the barrel cortex of rats following focal ischemia

2012 ◽  
Vol 525 (2) ◽  
pp. 135-139 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yunyun Zhang ◽  
Susu Huang ◽  
Bin Wang ◽  
Bo Sun ◽  
Wenlei Li ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Barrel Cortex ◽  
Focal Ischemia ◽  
Whisker Stimulation

scholarly journals Whisker Stimulation Enhances Angiogenesis in the Barrel Cortex following Focal Ischemia in Mice

2006 ◽  
Vol 27 (1) ◽  
pp. 57-68 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vivian R Whitaker ◽  
Lin Cui ◽  
Scott Miller ◽  
Shan P Yu ◽  
Ling Wei
Keyword(s):  
Barrel Cortex ◽  
Focal Ischemia ◽  
Whisker Stimulation
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