Sensory Processing in the Mammalian Brain
Sensory Processing in the Mammalian Brain

Author: Gerhard Werner

Publisher:

Published: 1989

Total Pages: 394

ISBN-13:

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The essays in this edited volume are written by neuroscientists distinguished for their research into the neurobiology of mammalian sensory processing. Covering a wide range of current experimental approaches to the investigation of the mammalian brain, the contributors address the nature of the central neural representation of the major sensory systems--taste, smell, hearing, sight, pain, and touch. Comparisons of their experimental rationales, methods of approach, and of the resulting data, demonstrate the commonality of many features of neural organization between the different sensory systems explored. Among the features discussed in detail are the import of elaborately structured maps of sensory function in the cerebral cortex, the degree of anatomical and physiological separation of different aspects of the input within single sensory systems, the nature of neuron assemblies responsible for complex analytic events, and the relation between metabolic patterns of activity and physiological recording of response properties. The importance of theoretical models, new imaging techniques, and investigations using neural transplants for experimental analysis of sensory systems are demonstrated and the influence of the concepts of cognitive psychology on experimental investigations of sensory processing is discussed. A series of commentaries links the book's different sections, indicating for the reader those aspects of the experimental findings that are of particular importance to an understanding of the field as a whole.

Cellular Mechanisms of Sensory Processing
Cellular Mechanisms of Sensory Processing

Author: Laszlo Urban

Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media

Published: 2013-06-29

Total Pages: 501

ISBN-13: 3642787622

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The research field of somatosensory processing in mammals has experienced revolutionary changes in recent years. Accumulation of basic and clinical data has greatly accelerated, and new phenomena have emerged. With the aid of new, refined methods, molecular and cellular changes have been described, underlying the signal transduction-transmission between the internal/external environment and the central nervous system have been described. The discovery of the interaction between the nervous and the immune system has, for example changed our view on the development of inflammatory diseases, while the cloning of genes encoding different trophic factors has boosted studies revealing profound changes in the regeneration of neurons, and induction of changes in phenotype. The study of the pre-and postsynaptic modulation of transmitter release, and the examination of the combined effects of amino acid and peptide transmitters has become recently possible by using cultured cell lines and in vitro techniques. Although it is in embryonic state, computational properties of single DRG cells under normal and pathological conditions are being investigated. Results soon or later will have a great impact on pain research and consequently ultimately in clinical pain management. This brief introduction indicates how our knowledge of the somatosensory system has increased dramatically recently. However, many investigators cultivate only a very specific field in the growing area of somatosensory research and find it difficult to integrate a more universal knowledge of their work.

Sensorimotor Integration in the Whisker System
Sensorimotor Integration in the Whisker System

Author: Patrik Krieger

Publisher: Springer

Published: 2015-10-01

Total Pages: 277

ISBN-13: 1493929755

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Sensorimotor integration, the dynamic process by which the sensory and motor systems communicate with each other, is crucial to humans’ and animals’ ability to explore and react to their environment. This book summarizes the main aspects of our current understanding of sensorimotor integration in 10 chapters written by leading scientists in this active and ever-growing field. This volume focuses on the whisker system, which is an exquisite model to experimentally approach sensorimotor integration in the mammalian brain. In this book, authors examine the whisker system on many different levels, ranging from the building blocks and neuronal circuits to sensorimotor behavior. Neuronal coding strategies, comparative analysis as well as robotics illustrate the multiple facets of this research and its broad impact on fundamental questions about the neurobiology of the mammalian brain.

Discovering the Brain
Discovering the Brain

Author: National Academy of Sciences

Publisher: National Academies Press

Published: 1992-01-01

Total Pages: 195

ISBN-13: 0309045290

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The brain ... There is no other part of the human anatomy that is so intriguing. How does it develop and function and why does it sometimes, tragically, degenerate? The answers are complex. In Discovering the Brain, science writer Sandra Ackerman cuts through the complexity to bring this vital topic to the public. The 1990s were declared the "Decade of the Brain" by former President Bush, and the neuroscience community responded with a host of new investigations and conferences. Discovering the Brain is based on the Institute of Medicine conference, Decade of the Brain: Frontiers in Neuroscience and Brain Research. Discovering the Brain is a "field guide" to the brainâ€"an easy-to-read discussion of the brain's physical structure and where functions such as language and music appreciation lie. Ackerman examines: How electrical and chemical signals are conveyed in the brain. The mechanisms by which we see, hear, think, and pay attentionâ€"and how a "gut feeling" actually originates in the brain. Learning and memory retention, including parallels to computer memory and what they might tell us about our own mental capacity. Development of the brain throughout the life span, with a look at the aging brain. Ackerman provides an enlightening chapter on the connection between the brain's physical condition and various mental disorders and notes what progress can realistically be made toward the prevention and treatment of stroke and other ailments. Finally, she explores the potential for major advances during the "Decade of the Brain," with a look at medical imaging techniquesâ€"what various technologies can and cannot tell usâ€"and how the public and private sectors can contribute to continued advances in neuroscience. This highly readable volume will provide the public and policymakersâ€"and many scientists as wellâ€"with a helpful guide to understanding the many discoveries that are sure to be announced throughout the "Decade of the Brain."

Interpretation of Mammalian Brain Rhythms of Sensorimotor Processing
Interpretation of Mammalian Brain Rhythms of Sensorimotor Processing

Author: Diane J. Whitmer

Publisher:

Published: 2008

Total Pages: 187

ISBN-13:

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A fundamental goal of neuroscience is to relate neural signals with external sensory stimuli and with complex behaviors such as movement. In many systems and brain regions, brain oscillations correlate with movement. The body of work presented here examines the role of oscillations in both sensory representation and motor output, spanning multiple scales of measurement from local field potential recordings to the large-scale electrical activity of the whole human brain. The vibrissa system of rats is an active sensory motor system where the whiskers are actively moved to explore the environment. The work described in Chapter II uses a behavioral paradigm to test coding strategies within the rat vibrissa system. We ask whether rats can discriminate the position of objects in the plane within which the whiskers move and whether discrimination can be accomplished with a single vibrissa. We report that rats can locate the position of objects in space relative to its body position with a single whisker, suggesting a neural code based on timing of the whisking cycle. Chapter III examines a salient, widespread oscillation associated with movements in rats (the theta rhythm), to determine whether this signal might drive whisking behavior. We find that hippocampal theta and the whisking rhythm are not coherent although they are oscillatory signals within the same spectral band. In humans, invasive brain measurements are possible in the cases of focal refractory epilepsy patients who are undergoing neurosurgical evaluation. Chapter IV uses intracranial measurements from epilepsy patients who performed a visually-cued finger movement task, to understand the electrical signals that enable a complex sensory motor action. We analyze signals spectrally, examining oscillations with a linear systems approach, specifically using independent component analysis (ICA) to interpret the signals. We find that ICA can separate pathological brain signals from motor signals and decompose intracranial signals into its underlying sources. Together, these results demonstrate that oscillations of peripheral sensors can encode the representation of spatial information, that neural rhythms in overlapping frequency bands are not necessarily entrained, and that ICA is a useful tool for ummixing motor and other signals in the human brain.

Neurobiology of Sensation and Reward
Neurobiology of Sensation and Reward

Author: Jay A. Gottfried

Publisher: CRC Press

Published: 2011-03-28

Total Pages: 458

ISBN-13: 142006729X

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Synthesizing coverage of sensation and reward into a comprehensive systems overview, Neurobiology of Sensation and Reward presents a cutting-edge and multidisciplinary approach to the interplay of sensory and reward processing in the brain. While over the past 70 years these areas have drifted apart, this book makes a case for reuniting sensation a

Processing of Sensory Information in the Superficial Dorsal Horn of the Spinal Cord
Processing of Sensory Information in the Superficial Dorsal Horn of the Spinal Cord

Author: F. Cervero

Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media

Published: 2012-12-06

Total Pages: 508

ISBN-13: 1461308259

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This book constitutes the proceedings of a NATO Advanced Research Workshop held in El Escorial (Spain) from 22 -27 May 1988 with the title Processing of sensory information in the superficial dorsal hom of the spinal cord. Included in the book are reports of most of the main lectures given at the meeting, section introductions written by each session Chairman, section reports compiled by session rapporteurs and some short papers invited from authors of communications given in poster form. The latter were selected on the basis of being immediately relevant to the topic of the workshop and of originating from a laboratory not represented by the main speakers. All in all we believe that the reader can get a fair idea of the structure and general character of this Workshop. The overall aim of the meeting was to review the current state of knowledge on the role of the superficial dorsal horn of the mammalian spinal cord as a nucleus of relay and modulation of the somatic and visceral sensory input to the central nervous system. In this context, the contribution of this spinal cord region to the appreciation of pain was a central topic of discussion. Over the last decade there has been a considerable increase in anatomical, physiological and neurochemical studies of the superficial dorsal horn.