Journal
NEUROSCIENCE BULLETIN
Volume 38, Issue 10, Pages 1139-1152Publisher
SPRINGER
DOI: 10.1007/s12264-022-00855-4
Keywords
Crossmodal input; Crossmodal response; Crossmodal plasticity; Sensory cortex; Crossmodal task; Sensory loss; GABAergic transmission
Categories
Funding
- National Natural Science Foundation of China [31970957, 31471078]
- Shanghai Science and Technology Commission [19ZR1416600, 2021-JCJQ-JJ-1089]
Ask authors/readers for more resources
This study found that neurons in sensory cortices exhibit significant responses to crossmodal stimulation, primarily through the sensory thalamus. These findings suggest the presence of widespread excitatory crossmodal inputs in the sensory cortex, which may play a role in brain functions involving crossmodal information processing or plasticity.
Crossmodal information processing in sensory cortices has been reported in sparsely distributed neurons under normal conditions and can undergo experience- or activity-induced plasticity. Given the potential role in brain function as indicated by previous reports, crossmodal connectivity in the sensory cortex needs to be further explored. Using perforated whole-cell recording in anesthetized adult rats, we found that almost all neurons recorded in the primary somatosensory, auditory, and visual cortices exhibited significant membrane-potential responses to crossmodal stimulation, as recorded when brain activity states were pharmacologically down-regulated in light anesthesia. These crossmodal cortical responses were excitatory and subthreshold, and further seemed to be relayed primarily by the sensory thalamus, but not the sensory cortex, of the stimulated modality. Our experiments indicate a sensory cortical presence of widespread excitatory crossmodal inputs, which might play roles in brain functions involving crossmodal information processing or plasticity.
Authors
I am an author on this paper
Click your name to claim this paper and add it to your profile.
Reviews
Recommended
No Data Available