Features of the systemic organization of cortical neurons with different forms of the manifestation of a conditioned reflex to time.

A conditioned food-procuring reflex to time (2-min interval) was developed in cats. The coupled activity of neurons in microareas and between microareas of the motor cortex was compared by cross correlation analysis in different forms of the manifestations of the conditioned reflex: decrease in the amplitude of respiratory movements, increase in amplitude, and food-procuring movement of the paw for several seconds prior to the delivery of the reinforcement. Differences were manifested in the degree of increase in the number of functional associations in the second half of the interval as compared with the first, and, to a still greater degree, also in the frequency with which intervals were encountered with altered structure of the interrelationship between the neurons. The changes observed did not always correlate with the change in the frequency of impulse activity of individual neurons, which was noted substantially less frequently.