The whisker-to-barrel system of adult mice was used in a study on the effects of short-lasting tactile stimulation and sensory conditioning training on GABAA receptor binding in the barrel field of somatosensory cortex. In vitro receptor binding autoradiography was used to examine the pattern and intensity of [3H]muscimol binding to GABAA receptors. A well-defined pattern of GABAA receptors in ...

The whisker region in the rodent primary motor (MI) cortex receives dense projections from neurons aligned with the layer IV septa in the whisker region of the primary somatosensory (SI) cortex. To compare whisker-induced responses in MI with respect to the SI responses in the septa and adjoining barrel regions, we used several experimental approaches in anesthetized rats. Reversible inactivati...

Our goal is to examine the relationship between neuron- and network-level processing in the context of a well-studied cortical function, the processing of thalamic input by whisker-barrel circuits in rodent neocortex. Here we focus on neuron-level processing and investigate the responses of excitatory and inhibitory barrel neurons to simulated thalamic inputs applied using the dynamic clamp met...

In this project, we use recent findings from electrophysiological recordings and a previous model of the cellular properties of barrel cortical neurons to explore their implications on the dynamic properties of directional tuning in barrel cortex. We find that directional tuning is influenced by the frequency and speed of whisker directions, even in the low frequency range of natural whisking. ...

Stress, a prevalent experience in modern society, is a major risk factor for many psychiatric disorders. Although sensorimotor abnormalities are often present in these disorders, little is known about how stress affects the sensory cortex. Combining behavioral analyses with in vivo synaptic imaging, we show that stressful experiences lead to progressive, clustered loss of dendritic spines along...

Research based on functional imaging and neuronal recordings in the barrel cortex subdivision of primary somatosensory cortex (SI) of the adult rat has revealed novel aspects of structure-function relationships in this cortex. Specifically, it has demonstrated that single whisker stimulation evokes subthreshold neuronal activity that spreads symmetrically within gray matter from the appropriate...