OBJECTIVES Somatosensory evoked potentials (SEPs) were used to index somatosensory-somatosensory interhemispheric interactions and highlight potential mechanisms by which TMS alters contralateral somatosensory cortex excitability. METHODS Fifteen healthy individuals participated in three sessions on separate days. On each day participants received either: (1) continuous theta burst (cTBS), (2...

The developing brain possesses a high potential for neuroplasticity. Yet, this remarkable potential of (re-)organization is not a general principle. It seems to vary among different functional systems. Here, we show that distinct brain structures involved in somatosensory processing are already prenatally determined so that a pre- or perinatally acquired (congenital) brain damage of such struct...

We recorded regional cerebral blood flow, somatosensory evoked potentials, and auditory evoked potentials in the thalamic relay nuclei (ventral posterior lateral nucleus and medial geniculate body) and in the somatosensory and auditory cortices during and after 1 hour of transient left middle cerebral artery occlusion in nine cats. Regional cerebral blood flow was also measured in the thalamoco...

Ano-rectal stimulation provides an important model for the processing of somatosensory and visceral sensations in the human nervous system. In spite of their anatomical proximity, the anal canal is innervated by somatosensory afferents whereas the rectum is innervated by the visceral nervous system. In a functional magnetic resonance (fMRI) experiment, we examined the cerebral responses to pneu...

There are some conflicts about constancy of conduction velocity (CV) in a given tract of nervous system. By recording excitatory postsynaptic currents (EPSC) in layer IV of the somatosensory cortex we tried to clear changes in CV of thalamocortical tract of mice aged 3 to 50 days old. Field potentials and EPSC were recorded in the layer IV by stimulation of ventrobasal nucleus of thalamus (VB) ...

The results reported here show convincingly that the adult somatosensory cortex alters its maps subsequent to injury. Studies with amputees and chronic pain patients have shown that pain may be one important perceptual correlate of the changes that were observed in primary somatosensory cortex. These results also have led to new approaches to rehabilitation. Both pharmacologic and behavioral in...

Processing of both painful and nonpainful somatosensory information is generally thought to be subserved by brain regions predominantly contralateral to the stimulated body region. However, lesions to right, but not left, posterior parietal cortex have been reported to produce a unilateral tactile neglect syndrome, suggesting that components of somatosensory information are preferentially proce...

The superorder Afrotheria consists of a diverse group of mammals, including elephants, hyraxes, dugongs, sea cows, aardvarks, tenrecs, golden moles, and elephant shrews. Recent studies suggest this clade diverged from other placental mammals 100 million years ago and thus may represent the sister group to the remaining placental mammals. Despite this important taxonomic position, relatively few...

The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between stroke lesion location and the resulting somatosensory deficit. We studied exteroceptive and proprioceptive somatosensory symptoms and stroke lesions in 38 patients with first-ever acute stroke. The Erasmus modified Nottingham Sensory Assessment was used to clinically evaluate somatosensory functioning in the arm and hand within ...

Tactile sensory information is first channeled from the primary somatosensory cortex on the postcentral gyrus to the parietal opercular region (i.e., the secondary somatosensory cortex) and the rostral inferior parietal lobule and, from there, to the prefrontal cortex, with which bidirectional connections exist. Although we know that tactile memory signals can be found in the prefrontal cortex,...