Posterior parietal association cortex of the monkey: command functions for operations within extrapersonal space

1975 ◽  
Vol 38 (4) ◽  
pp. 871-908 ◽  
Author(s):  
V. B. Mountcastle ◽  
J. C. Lynch ◽  
A. Georgopoulos ◽  
H. Sakata ◽  
C. Acuna
Keyword(s):  
Cortical Neurons ◽  
The Body ◽  
Association Cortex ◽  
Active Movement ◽  
Cortical Cells ◽  
Sensory Stimuli ◽  
Passive Rotation ◽  
Extrapersonal Space ◽  
Area 5 ◽  
Posterior Parietal

Experiments were made on the posterior parietal association cortical areas 5 and in 17 hemispheres of 11 monkeys, 6 M. mulatta and 5 M. arctoides. The electrical signs of the activity of single cortical cells were recorded with microelectrodes in waking animals as they carried out certain behavioral acts in response to a series of sensory cues. The behavioral paradigms were one for detection alone, and a second for detection plus projection of the arm to contact a stationary or moving target placed at arm's length. Of the 125 microelectrode penetrations made, 1,451 neurons were identified in terms of the correlation of their activity with the behavioral acts and their sensitivity or lack of it to sensory stimuli delivered passively; 180 were studied quantitatively. The locations of cortical neurons were identified in serial sections; 94 penetrations and 1,058 neurons were located with certainty. About two-thirds of the neurons of area 5 were activated by passive rotation of the limbs at their joints; of these, 82% were related to single, contralateral joints, 10% to two or more contralateral joints, 6% to ipsilateral, and 2% to joints on both sides of the body. A few of the latter were active during complex bodily postures. A large proportion of area 5 neurons were relatively insensitive to passive joint rotations, as compared with similar neurons of the postcentral gyrus, but were driven to high rates of discharge when the same joint was rotated during an active movement of the animal...

A Neural Network Model of Cortical Activity during Reaching

1993 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 14-33 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ronald Kettner ◽  
Joanne Marcario ◽  
Nicholas Port
Keyword(s):  
Neural Network ◽  
Network Model ◽  
Neural Network Model ◽  
Cortical Neurons ◽  
Posterior Parietal Cortex ◽  
Large Population ◽  
Association Cortex ◽  
Preferred Direction ◽  
The Neural Network ◽  
Posterior Parietal

A neural network model that produces many of the directional and spatial response properties that have been observed for cortical neurons in monkeys moving toward targets in space is described. These include motor cortex units with broad tuning in a single preferred direction, approximately linear variation in activity for different hold positions, and approximate invariance in preferred direction for different starting points in space. Association cortex units in the model are sometimes irregular and reminiscent of neurons observed in visually responsive brain areas such as the posterior parietal cortex. The model is also compatible with population analyses performed on motor cortical neurons. Across network units, the distribution of preferred directions is uniformly distributed in directional space, and the degree of tuning and response magnitude vary from unit to unit. A population code used to predict accurately the direction of arm movements from a large population of coarsely tuned individual neurons allows predictions using a simulated population of unit responses obtained from the neural network model. This code works for different starting locations in space using the same parameters.

The representation of arm movements in postcentral and parietal cortex

1988 ◽  
Vol 66 (4) ◽  
pp. 455-463 ◽  
Author(s):  
John F. Kalaska
Keyword(s):  
Contractile Activity ◽  
Single Cells ◽  
The Body ◽  
Movement Direction ◽  
Active Movement ◽  
Tuning Curves ◽  
Area 5 ◽  
Quantitative Verification ◽  
Muscle Contractile ◽  
Passive Movements

Considerable experimental evidence supports the hypothesis that the neocortical processes underlying kinesthetic sensation form a hierarchical series of cells signalling increasingly complex patterns of movement of the body. However, this view has been criticized and the data lack quantitative verification under controlled conditions. These studies have also typically used one-dimensional (reciprocal) movements, even of multiple degree-of-freedom joints such as the wrist or shoulder, and have been restricted to passive movements. This latter limitation is particularly critical, since the response of many muscle receptors is affected by fusimotor activity while that of many articular receptors is sensitive to the level of muscle contractile activity. Both factors introduce significant kinesthetic ambiguity to the signals arising from these receptors during active movement. This ambiguity is evident in the discharge of primary somatosensory cortex proprioceptive cells. Studies in area 5 show that single cells signal shoulder joint movements in the form of broad directional tuning curves. The pattern of activity of the entire population encodes movement direction. The cells appear to encode spatial aspects of movement unambiguously, since their discharge is relatively insensitive to the changes in muscle activity required to produce the same movements under different load conditions. It is not yet certain whether the somesthetic activity in area 5 is a kinesthetic representation that is sequential to and hierarchically superior to that in SI, or whether it is a parallel representation with separate and distinct functions.

Neurons in Area 5 of the Posterior Parietal Cortex in the Cat Contribute to Interlimb Coordination During Visually Guided Locomotion: A Role in Working Memory

2010 ◽  
Vol 103 (4) ◽  
pp. 2234-2254 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kim Lajoie ◽  
Jacques-Étienne Andujar ◽  
Keir Pearson ◽  
Trevor Drew
Keyword(s):  
Working Memory ◽  
Parietal Cortex ◽  
Posterior Parietal Cortex ◽  
Interlimb Coordination ◽  
The Body ◽  
Visually Guided ◽  
Discharge Activity ◽  
Area 5 ◽  
Posterior Parietal ◽  
Step Over

We tested the hypothesis that area 5 of the posterior parietal cortex (PPC) contributes to interlimb coordination in locomotor tasks requiring visual guidance by recording neuronal activity in this area in three cats in two locomotor paradigms. In the first paradigm, cats were required to step over obstacles attached to a moving treadmill belt. We recorded 47 neurons that discharged in relationship to the hindlimbs. Of these, 31/47 discharged between the passage of the fore- and hindlimbs (FL-HL cells) over the obstacle. The activity of most of these neurons (25/31) was related to the fore- and hindlimb contralateral to the recording site when the contralateral forelimb was the first to pass over the obstacle. In many cells, discharge activity was limb-independent in that it was better related to the ipsilateral limbs when they were the first to step over the obstacle. The other 16/47 neurons discharged only when the hindlimbs stepped over the obstacle with the majority of these (12/16) discharging between the passage of the two hindlimbs over the obstacle. We tested 15/47 cells, including 11/47 FL-HL cells, in a second paradigm in which cats stepped over an obstacle on a walkway. Discharge activity in all of these cells was significantly modulated when the cat stepped over the obstacle and remained modified for periods of ≤1 min when forward progress of the cat was delayed with either the fore- and hindlimbs, or the two hindlimbs, straddling the obstacle. We suggest that neurons in area 5 of the PPC contribute to interlimb coordination during locomotion by estimating the spatial and temporal attributes of the obstacle with respect to the body. We further suggest that the discharge observed both during the steps over the obstacle and in the delayed locomotor paradigm is a neuronal correlate of working memory.

scholarly journals Posterior parietal cortex contains a command apparatus for hand movements

2017 ◽  
Vol 114 (16) ◽  
pp. 4255-4260 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jean-Alban Rathelot ◽  
Richard P. Dum ◽  
Peter L. Strick
Keyword(s):  
Electrical Stimulation ◽  
Frontal Lobe ◽  
Parietal Cortex ◽  
Posterior Parietal Cortex ◽  
Hand Movements ◽  
Lateral Region ◽  
Extrapersonal Space ◽  
Area 5 ◽  
Posterior Parietal ◽  
Premotor Areas

Mountcastle and colleagues proposed that the posterior parietal cortex contains a “command apparatus” for the operation of the hand in immediate extrapersonal space [Mountcastle et al. (1975) J Neurophysiol 38(4):871–908]. Here we provide three lines of converging evidence that a lateral region within area 5 has corticospinal neurons that are directly linked to the control of hand movements. First, electrical stimulation in a lateral region of area 5 evokes finger and wrist movements. Second, corticospinal neurons in the same region of area 5 terminate at spinal locations that contain last-order interneurons that innervate hand motoneurons. Third, this lateral region of area 5 contains many neurons that make disynaptic connections with hand motoneurons. The disynaptic input to motoneurons from this portion of area 5 is as direct and prominent as that from any of the premotor areas in the frontal lobe. Thus, our results establish that a region within area 5 contains a motor area with corticospinal neurons that could function as a command apparatus for operation of the hand.

scholarly journals Spatial frames of reference and somatosensory processing: a neuropsychological perspective

1997 ◽  
Vol 352 (1360) ◽  
pp. 1401-1409 ◽  
Author(s):  
Giuseppe Vallar
Keyword(s):  
Right Hemisphere ◽  
Higher Order ◽  
The Body ◽  
Frames Of Reference ◽  
Neural Basis ◽  
Right Brain ◽  
Extrapersonal Space ◽  
Spatial Frames Of Reference ◽  
Posterior Parietal ◽  
Sensory Processes

In patients with lesions in the right hemisphere, frequently involving the posterior parietal regions, left–sided somatosensory (and visual and motor) deficits not only reflect a disorder of primary sensory processes, but also have a higher–order component related to a defective spatial representation of the body. This additional factor, related to right brain damage, is clinically relevant: contralesional hemianaesthesia (and hemianopia and hemiplegia) is more frequent in right brain–damaged patients than in patients with damage to the left side of the brain. Three main lines of investigation suggest the existence of this higher–order pathological factor. (i) Right brain–damaged patients with left hemineglect may show physiological evidence of preserved processing of somatosensory stimuli, of which they are not aware. Similar results have been obtained in the visual domain. (ii) Direction–specific vestibular, visual optokinetic and somatosensory or proprioceptive stimulations may displace spatial frames of reference in right brain–damaged patients with left hemineglect, reducing or increasing the extent of the patients’ ipsilesional rightward directional error, and bring about similar directional effects in normal subjects. These stimulations, which may improve or worsen a number of manifestations of the neglect syndrome (such as extrapersonal and personal hemineglect), have similar effects on the severity of left somatosensory deficits (defective detection of tactile stimuli, position sense disorders). However, visuospatial hemineglect and the somatosensory deficits improved by these stimulations are independent, albeit related, disorders. (iii) The severity of left somatosensory deficits is affected by the spatial position of body segments, with reference to the midsagittal plane of the trunk. A general implication of these observations is that spatial (non–somatotopic) levels of representation contribute to corporeal awareness. The neural basis of these spatial frames includes the posterior parietal and the premotor frontal regions. These spatial representations could provide perceptual–premotor interfaces for the organization of movements (e.g. pointing, locomotion) directed towards targets in personal and extrapersonal space. In line with this view, there is evidence that the sensory stimulations that modulate left somatosensory deficits affect left motor disorders in a similar, direction–specific, fashion.

Spatio-temporal updating in the posterior parietal cortex

2012 ◽  
Vol 25 (0) ◽  
pp. 12
Author(s):  
Kenji Kansaku
Keyword(s):  
Parietal Cortex ◽  
Posterior Parietal Cortex ◽  
Positive Association ◽  
The Body ◽  
Control Network ◽  
Seed Region ◽  
Sensory Stimuli ◽  
Posterior Parietal ◽  
Spatio Temporal ◽  
Frontoparietal Control Network

Adopting an unusual posture can sometimes give rise to paradoxical experiences. For example, the subjective ordering of successive unseen tactile stimuli delivered to the two arms can be affected when people cross them. A growing body of evidence highlights the role played by the parietal cortex in spatio-temporal information processing when sensory stimuli are delivered to the body or when actions are executed; however, little is known about the neural basis of such paradoxical feelings. We demonstrate increased fMRI activation in the left posterior parietal cortex when human participants adopted a crossed hands posture with their eyes closed. When participants performed tactile temporal order judgments (TOJs), we observed a positive association between activity in this area and the degree of reversal in TOJs resulting from crossing arms. The strongest positive association was observed in the left intraparietal sulcus (IPS) (Wada et al., 2011). We then examined connectivity of the IPS to determine the functional anatomy of the arm crossing effect, as well as connectivity using a seed region in the posterior cingulate cortex to evaluate default mode network (DMN) for comparison. The regions showing connectivity with the IPS overlapped with regions within the DMN but the IPS also showed connectivity with other brain areas within the frontoparietal control network (Ora et al., 2012). The IPS, which can be considered a gateway connecting the DMN to the frontoparietal control network, may therefore be critically involved in monitoring limb position and in spatio-temporal binding when serial events are delivered to the limbs.

Visuo-tactile Integration in Personal Space

2012 ◽  
Vol 24 (3) ◽  
pp. 543-552 ◽  
Author(s):  
Matthew R. Longo ◽  
Jason Jiri Musil ◽  
Patrick Haggard
Keyword(s):  
Posterior Parietal Cortex ◽  
Personal Space ◽  
The Body ◽  
Spatial Constraints ◽  
Left Hand ◽  
Right Hand ◽  
Extrapersonal Space ◽  
Posterior Parietal ◽  
The Right ◽  
Tactile Integration

Integration of information across sensory modalities is enhanced when stimuli in both modalities are in the same location. This “spatial rule” of multisensory integration has been primarily studied in humans by comparing stimuli located either in the same versus opposite side of the body midline or in peripersonal versus extrapersonal space, both of which involve large, categorical differences in spatial location. Here we used psychophysics and ERPs to investigate visuo-tactile integration in personal space (i.e., on the skin surface). We used the mirror box technique to manipulate the congruence of visual and tactile information about which finger on either the right or left hand had been touched. We observed clear compatibility effects for both visual and tactile judgments of which finger on the left hand had been touched. No such effects, however, were found for judgments about the right hand. ERP data showed a similar pattern. Amplitude of the vertex P200 potential was enhanced and that of the N2 was reduced for congruent visuo-tactile events on the left, but not the right, hand. Similarly, a later positivity over posterior parietal cortices (P300) showed contralateral enhancement for congruent visuo-tactile events on both the left and right hands. These results provide clear evidence for spatial constraints on visuo-tactile integration defined in personal space and also reveal clear lateralization of these effects. Furthermore, these results link these “ultraprecise” spatial constraints to processing in the right posterior parietal cortex.

scholarly journals Maternal Ethanol Exposure Acutely Elevates Src Family Kinase Activity in the Fetal Cortex

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dandan Wang ◽  
Brian W. Howell ◽  
Eric C. Olson
Keyword(s):  
Tyrosine Phosphorylation ◽  
Cortical Neurons ◽  
Molecular Mechanisms ◽  
Fetal Brain ◽  
Ethanol Exposure ◽  
Src Family Kinase ◽  
Cortical Cells ◽  
Signaling Systems ◽  
Sustained Reduction ◽  
Reelin Signaling

AbstractFetal alcohol syndrome (FAS) is characterized by disrupted fetal brain development and postnatal cognitive impairment. The targets of alcohol are diverse, and it is not clear whether there are common underlying molecular mechanisms producing these disruptions. Prior work established that acute ethanol exposure causes a transient increase in tyrosine phosphorylation of multiple proteins in cultured embryonic cortical cells. In this study, we show that a similar tyrosine phosphorylation transient occurs in the fetal brain after maternal dosing with ethanol. Using phospho-specific antibodies and immunohistochemistry, we mapped regions of highest tyrosine phosphorylation in the fetal cerebral cortex and found that areas of dendritic and axonal growth showed elevated tyrosine phosphorylation 10 min after maternal ethanol exposure. These were also areas of Src expression and Src family kinase (SFK) activation loop phosphorylation (pY416) expression. Importantly, maternal pretreatment with the SFK inhibitor dasatinib completely prevents both the pY416 increase and the tyrosine phosphorylation response. The phosphorylation response was observed in the perisomatic region and neurites of immature migrating and differentiating primary neurons. Importantly, the initial phosphotyrosine transient (~ 30 min) targets both Src and Dab1, two critical elements in Reelin signaling, a pathway required for normal cortical development. This initial phosphorylation response is followed by sustained reduction in Ser3 phosphorylation of n-cofilin, a critical actin severing protein and an identified downstream effector of Reelin signaling. This biochemical disruption is associated with sustained reduction of F-actin content and disrupted Golgi apparatus morphology in developing cortical neurons. The finding outlines a model in which the initial activation of SFKs by ethanol has the potential to disrupt multiple developmentally important signaling systems for several hours after maternal exposure.

Effects of 5-HT on thalamocortical synaptic transmission in the developing rat

1994 ◽  
Vol 72 (5) ◽  
pp. 2438-2450 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. W. Rhoades ◽  
C. A. Bennett-Clarke ◽  
M. Y. Shi ◽  
R. D. Mooney
Keyword(s):  
Synaptic Transmission ◽  
Somatosensory Cortex ◽  
Cortical Neurons ◽  
Input Resistance ◽  
Inhibitory Effect ◽  
Primary Somatosensory Cortex ◽  
Excitatory Postsynaptic Potential ◽  
Dependent Manner ◽  
Cortical Cells ◽  
Thalamocortical Axons

1. Recent immunocytochemical and receptor binding data have demonstrated a transient somatotopic patterning of serotonin (5-HT)-immunoreactive fibers in the primary somatosensory cortex of developing rats and a transient expression of 5-HT1B receptors on thalamocortical axons from the ventral posteromedial thalamic nucleus (VPM). 2. These results suggest that 5-HT should strongly modulate thalamocortical synaptic transmission for a limited time during postnatal development. This hypothesis was tested in intracellular recording experiments carried out in thalamocortical slice preparations that included VPM, the thalamic radiations, and the primary somatosensory cortex. Effects of 5-HT and analogues were monitored on membrane potentials and input resistances of cortical neurons and on the amplitude of the synaptic potentials evoked in them by stimulation of VPM. 3. Results obtained from cortical neurons in slices taken from rats during the first 2 wk of life indicated that 5-HT strongly inhibited the VPM-evoked excitatory postsynaptic potential (EPSP) recorded from cortical neurons in a dose-dependent manner. In contrast, 5-HT had no significant effects on membrane potential, input resistance, or depolarizations induced by direct application of glutamic acid to cortical cells. 4. The effects of 5-HT were mimicked by the 5-HT1B receptor agonists 1-[3-(trifluoromethyl)phenyl]-piperazine (TFMPP) and 7-trifluoromethyl-4(4-methyl-1-piperazinyl)-pyrrolo[1,2-a]-quinoxaline maleate and antagonized by the 5-HT1B receptor antagonist (-)-pindolol. The 5-HT1A agonist [(+/-)8-hydroxydipropylaminotetralin HBr] (8-OH-DPAT) had less effect on the VPM-elicited EPSP, and the effects of 5-HT upon this response were generally not antagonized by either 1-(2-methoxyphenyl)-4-[4-(2- phthalimmido)butyl]piperazine HBr (a 5-HT1A antagonist) or ketanserine (a 5-HT2 antagonist) or spiperone (a 5-HT1A and 2 antagonist). 5. The ability of 5-HT to inhibit the VPM-evoked EPSP in cortical neurons was significantly reduced in slices from animals > 2 wk of age. The effectiveness of TFMPP in such animals was even more attenuated than that of 5-HT, and the effectiveness of 8-OH-DPAT was unchanged with age. These results are consistent with the disappearance of 5-HT1B receptors from thalamocortical axons after the second postnatal week and the maintenance of 5-HT1A receptors on some neurons. 6. All of the results obtained in this study are consistent with the conclusion that 5-HT has a profound, but developmentally transient, presynaptic inhibitory effect upon thalamocortical transmission in the rat's somatosensory cortex.

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