Juliano S L, Whitsel B L
Department of Physiology and Dental Research, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill 25714.
J Comp Neurol. 1987 Sep 22;263(4):514-25. doi: 10.1002/cne.902630405.
The metabolic activity pattern produced in the primary somatosensory cortex (SI) of primates by repetitive delivery of a tactile stimulus is distinctly patchy. The functional significance of these patches, however, remains obscure. This investigation sought to determine the correlation between neural and metabolic activity produced by tactile stimuli and to evaluate the relationship, if any, between the neural activity and metabolic patches evoked by similar stimuli. Experiments were undertaken in which extracellular microelectrode recordings were carried out in animals that subsequently underwent a 2-deoxyglucose (2DG) study. Three types of relations were identified. First, the receptive fields (RF) and modality properties of neurons sampled in locations at which patches of metabolic label were found matched the "place" and "modal" properties of the stimulus used to produce 2DG labeling. Second, in cortical locations where the RF and modality properties of the sampled neurons differed from either the place or modal properties of the stimulus used to evoke the 2DG label, no above-background increases in metabolic labeling were found. Finally, in some cortical locations at which the receptive field and modality properties of the neurons matched those of the 2-deoxyglucose mapping stimulus, no above-background increases in metabolic labeling were found. This outcome leads us to suggest that moment-to-moment changes in neural responsivity, which might remain undetected by conventional receptive field mapping methods, contribute to the patchy pattern of metabolic activity visualized by the 2-deoxyglucose method.
通过重复施加触觉刺激在灵长类动物的初级体感皮层（SI）中产生的代谢活动模式明显呈斑块状。然而，这些斑块的功能意义仍不明确。本研究旨在确定触觉刺激产生的神经活动与代谢活动之间的相关性，并评估相似刺激诱发的神经活动与代谢斑块之间的关系（如果存在的话）。实验中，在动物身上进行细胞外微电极记录，随后对这些动物进行2-脱氧葡萄糖（2DG）研究。确定了三种类型的关系。第一，在发现代谢标记斑块的位置采样的神经元的感受野（RF）和模态特性与用于产生2DG标记的刺激的“位置”和“模态”特性相匹配。第二，在采样神经元的RF和模态特性与用于诱发2DG标记的刺激的位置或模态特性不同的皮质位置，未发现代谢标记有高于背景的增加。最后，在一些神经元的感受野和模态特性与2-脱氧葡萄糖映射刺激相匹配的皮质位置，也未发现代谢标记有高于背景的增加。这一结果使我们认为，传统感受野映射方法可能检测不到的神经反应性的瞬间变化，促成了2-脱氧葡萄糖方法所显示的代谢活动的斑块状模式。
