scholarly journals Layer-specific activation of sensory input and predictive feedback in the human primary somatosensory cortex

2019 ◽  
Vol 5 (5) ◽  
pp. eaav9053 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yinghua Yu ◽  
Laurentius Huber ◽  
Jiajia Yang ◽  
David C. Jangraw ◽  
Daniel A. Handwerker ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Somatosensory Cortex ◽  
Sensory Input ◽  
Specific Activity ◽  
Predictive Coding ◽  
Somatosensory System ◽  
Middle Layer ◽  
Predictive Processing ◽  
Primary Somatosensory Cortex ◽  
Imaging Data ◽  
Deep Layers

When humans perceive a sensation, their brains integrate inputs from sensory receptors and process them based on their expectations. The mechanisms of this predictive coding in the human somatosensory system are not fully understood. We fill a basic gap in our understanding of the predictive processing of somatosensation by examining the layer-specific activity in sensory input and predictive feedback in the human primary somatosensory cortex (S1). We acquired submillimeter functional magnetic resonance imaging data at 7T (n = 10) during a task of perceived, predictable, and unpredictable touching sequences. We demonstrate that the sensory input from thalamic projects preferentially activates the middle layer, while the superficial and deep layers in S1 are more engaged for cortico-cortical predictive feedback input. These findings are pivotal to understanding the mechanisms of tactile prediction processing in the human somatosensory cortex.

Revisiting parallel and serial processing in the somatosensory system

2007 ◽  
Vol 30 (2) ◽  
pp. 208-209 ◽  
Author(s):  
Preston E. Garraghty
Keyword(s):  
Somatosensory Cortex ◽  
Scientific Community ◽  
Somatosensory System ◽  
Primary Somatosensory Cortex ◽  
Related Issue ◽  
Serial Processing ◽  
Cortical Areas ◽  
Number Of Factors ◽  
In Series

AbstractThe issue of whether information is processed in parallel or in series in the somatosensory system is complicated by a number of factors. Included among these is the failure on the part of the scientific community to reach a consensus as to what actually constitutes the primary somatosensory cortex (SI) in higher primates. A second, related issue is the marked difference in the organization of the cortical areas subserving somatosensation across species.

scholarly journals Motor planning brings human primary somatosensory cortex into action-specific preparatory states

eLife ◽  
2022 ◽  
Vol 11 ◽  
Author(s):  
Giacomo Ariani ◽  
J Andrew Pruszynski ◽  
Jörn Diedrichsen
Keyword(s):  
Somatosensory Cortex ◽  
Motor Neurons ◽  
Primary Motor Cortex ◽  
Specific Activity ◽  
Activity Patterns ◽  
Critical Role ◽  
Motor Planning ◽  
Movement Control ◽  
Movement Planning ◽  
Primary Somatosensory Cortex

Motor planning plays a critical role in producing fast and accurate movement. Yet, the neural processes that occur in human primary motor and somatosensory cortex during planning, and how they relate to those during movement execution, remain poorly understood. Here we used 7T functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) and a delayed movement paradigm to study single finger movement planning and execution. The inclusion of no-go trials and variable delays allowed us to separate what are typically overlapping planning and execution brain responses. Although our univariate results show widespread deactivation during finger planning, multivariate pattern analysis revealed finger-specific activity patterns in contralateral primary somatosensory cortex (S1), which predicted the planned finger action. Surprisingly, these activity patterns were as informative as those found in contralateral primary motor cortex (M1). Control analyses ruled out the possibility that the detected information was an artifact of subthreshold movements during the preparatory delay. Furthermore, we observed that finger-specific activity patterns during planning were highly correlated to those during execution. These findings reveal that motor planning activates the specific S1 and M1 circuits that are engaged during the execution of a finger press, while activity in both regions is overall suppressed. We propose that preparatory states in S1 may improve movement control through changes in sensory processing or via direct influence of spinal motor neurons.

scholarly journals Testing predictive processing as an account of visually driven responses to real-world objects in primary somatosensory cortex

2020 ◽  
Vol 20 (11) ◽  
pp. 1816
Author(s):  
Fraser Smith ◽  
Ethan Knights ◽  
Janak Saada ◽  
Stephanie Rossit ◽  
Kerri Bailey
Keyword(s):  
Somatosensory Cortex ◽  
Real World ◽  
Predictive Processing ◽  
Primary Somatosensory Cortex

scholarly journals Prior expectations evoke stimulus-specific activity in the deep layers of the primary visual cortex

PLoS Biology ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 18 (12) ◽  
pp. e3001023
Author(s):  
Fraser Aitken ◽  
Georgios Menelaou ◽  
Oliver Warrington ◽  
Renée S. Koolschijn ◽  
Nadège Corbin ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Visual Cortex ◽  
Primary Visual Cortex ◽  
Specific Activity ◽  
Predictive Processing ◽  
Cortical Layers ◽  
Computational Architecture ◽  
Deep Layers ◽  
Flow Through ◽  
The Brain ◽  
The Way

The way we perceive the world is strongly influenced by our expectations. In line with this, much recent research has revealed that prior expectations strongly modulate sensory processing. However, the neural circuitry through which the brain integrates external sensory inputs with internal expectation signals remains unknown. In order to understand the computational architecture of the cortex, we need to investigate the way these signals flow through the cortical layers. This is crucial because the different cortical layers have distinct intra- and interregional connectivity patterns, and therefore determining which layers are involved in a cortical computation can inform us on the sources and targets of these signals. Here, we used ultra-high field (7T) functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to reveal that prior expectations evoke stimulus-specific activity selectively in the deep layers of the primary visual cortex (V1). These findings are in line with predictive processing theories proposing that neurons in the deep cortical layers represent perceptual hypotheses and thereby shed light on the computational architecture of cortex.

scholarly journals Seeing Touch Is Correlated with Content-Specific Activity in Primary Somatosensory Cortex

2011 ◽  
Vol 21 (9) ◽  
pp. 2113-2121 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kaspar Meyer ◽  
Jonas T. Kaplan ◽  
Ryan Essex ◽  
Hanna Damasio ◽  
Antonio Damasio
Keyword(s):  
Somatosensory Cortex ◽  
Specific Activity ◽  
Primary Somatosensory Cortex

scholarly journals Reach Out and Touch Someone: Anticipatory Sensorimotor Processes of Active Interpersonal Touch

2014 ◽  
Vol 26 (9) ◽  
pp. 2171-2185 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sjoerd J. H. Ebisch ◽  
Francesca Ferri ◽  
Gian Luca Romani ◽  
Vittorio Gallese
Keyword(s):  
Social Behavior ◽  
Somatosensory Cortex ◽  
Temporal Cortex ◽  
Somatosensory System ◽  
Primary Somatosensory Cortex ◽  
Human Hand ◽  
Skin Contact ◽  
Interpersonal Touch ◽  
Medial Pfc ◽  
Sensorimotor Processes

Anticipating the sensorimotor consequences of an action for both self and other is fundamental for action coordination when individuals socially interact. Somatosensation constitutes an elementary component of social cognition and sensorimotor prediction, but its functions in active social behavior remain unclear. We hypothesized that the somatosensory system contributes to social haptic behavior as evidenced by specific anticipatory activation patterns when touching an animate target (human hand) compared with an inanimate target (fake hand). fMRI scanning was performed during a paradigm that allowed us to isolate the anticipatory representations of active interpersonal touch while controlling for nonsocial sensorimotor processes and possible confounds because of interpersonal relationships or socioemotional valence. Active interpersonal touch was studied both as skin-to-skin contact and as object-mediated touch. The results showed weaker deactivation in primary somatosensory cortex and medial pFC and stronger activation in cerebellum for the animate target, compared with the inanimate target, when intending to touch it with one's own hand. Differently, in anticipation of touching the human hand with an object, anterior inferior parietal lobule and lateral occipital-temporal cortex showed stronger activity. When actually touching a human hand with one's own hand, activation was stronger in medial pFC but weaker in primary somatosensory cortex. The findings provide new insight on the contribution of simulation and sensory prediction mechanisms to active social behavior. They also suggest that literally getting in touch with someone and touching someone by using an object might be approached by an agent as functionally distinct conditions.

scholarly journals Revealing the neural fingerprints of a missing hand

eLife ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 5 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sanne Kikkert ◽  
James Kolasinski ◽  
Saad Jbabdi ◽  
Irene Tracey ◽  
Christian F Beckmann ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Somatosensory Cortex ◽  
Sensory Input ◽  
Life Experience ◽  
Primary Somatosensory Cortex ◽  
Neural Signals ◽  
Ultra High Field ◽  
Fine Grained ◽  
Arm Amputation ◽  
Main Input ◽  
Hand Area

The hand area of the primary somatosensory cortex contains detailed finger topography, thought to be shaped and maintained by daily life experience. Here we utilise phantom sensations and ultra high-field neuroimaging to uncover preserved, though latent, representation of amputees’ missing hand. We show that representation of the missing hand’s individual fingers persists in the primary somatosensory cortex even decades after arm amputation. By demonstrating stable topography despite amputation, our finding questions the extent to which continued sensory input is necessary to maintain organisation in sensory cortex, thereby reopening the question what happens to a cortical territory once its main input is lost. The discovery of persistent digit topography of amputees’ missing hand could be exploited for the development of intuitive and fine-grained control of neuroprosthetics, requiring neural signals of individual digits.

scholarly journals Motor planning brings human primary somatosensory cortex into movement-specific preparatory states

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Giacomo Ariani ◽  
J. Andrew Pruszynski ◽  
Jörn Diedrichsen
Keyword(s):  
Somatosensory Cortex ◽  
Primary Motor Cortex ◽  
Specific Activity ◽  
Activity Patterns ◽  
Critical Role ◽  
Motor Planning ◽  
Movement Planning ◽  
Primary Somatosensory Cortex ◽  
Finger Movement ◽  
Movement Execution

Motor planning plays a critical role in producing fast and accurate movement. Yet, the neural processes that occur in human primary motor and somatosensory cortex during planning, and how they relate to those during movement execution, remain poorly understood. Here we used 7T functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) and a delayed movement paradigm to study single finger movement planning and execution. The inclusion of no-go trials and variable delays allowed us to separate what are typically overlapping planning and execution brain responses. Although our univariate results show widespread deactivation during finger planning, multivariate pattern analysis revealed finger-specific activity patterns in contralateral primary somatosensory cortex (S1), which predicted the planned finger movements. Surprisingly, these activity patterns were similarly strong to those found in contralateral primary motor cortex (M1). Control analyses ruled out the possibility that the detected information was an artifact of subthreshold movements during the preparatory delay. Furthermore, we observed that finger-specific activity patterns during planning were highly correlated to those during movement execution. These findings reveal that motor planning activates the specific S1 and M1 circuits that are engaged during the execution of a finger movement, while activity in S1 and M1 is overall suppressed. We propose that preparatory states in S1 may improve movement control through changes in sensory processing or via direct influence of spinal motor neurons.

Somatosensory Specializations in Mammals

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jon H. Kaas
Keyword(s):  
Somatosensory Cortex ◽  
Somatosensory System ◽  
Primary Somatosensory Cortex ◽  
Local Environments

Early mammals were small with little neocortex that included a somatosensory system with a mediolateral strip of primary somatosensory cortex and three or four adjoining somatosensory fields. As early mammals radiated out and adapted to local environments, their somatosensory systems adjusted and became specialized in many ways. Most of these specializations were most obvious as disproportionally enlarged representations of important sensory surfaces of the skin in primary somatosensory cortex. These enlarged representations included those of the bill of the duckbilled platypus, the nose of the star-nosed mole, the teeth and tongue of monkeys, the glabrous hand of raccoons, the wing of bats, and the tactile tail of some monkeys. These and other specializations enhanced the ability of these mammals to adapt to their environments and to precisely evaluate relevant sensory events and make appropriate behavioral adjustments.

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