Mann M D, Rehkämper G, Reinke H, Frahm H D, Necker R, Nevo E
Department of Physiology and Biophysics, University of Nebraska, Omaha, USA.
J Hirnforsch. 1997;38(1):47-59.
The hypothesis that the somatosensory system in the naturally blind subterranean rodent Spalax ehrenbergi (= mole rat) is enlarged was tested by measuring the volume of somatosensory cortex and somatosensory thalamic nuclei (Nuclei ventrales posteromedialis and posterolateralis). Electrophysiology and tracing were used to identify and delineate these areas. On average the somatosensory cortex is 1.7 times larger and the thalamic nuclei are 1.3 times larger in the blind mole rat than in the sighted laboratory rat if different body weights are taken into consideration. This confirms the demands of a life underground where it seems touch would replace vision. The data reveal a remarkable brain plasticity among mammals under natural conditions.
通过测量体感皮层和体感丘脑核（腹后内侧核和腹后外侧核）的体积，对天生失明的地下啮齿动物斯氏鼹形鼠（Spalax ehrenbergi，即鼹鼠）的体感系统是否扩大这一假设进行了测试。利用电生理学和追踪技术来识别和描绘这些区域。如果考虑到不同的体重，平均而言，盲鼹鼠的体感皮层比有视力的实验大鼠大1.7倍，丘脑核大1.3倍。这证实了地下生活的需求，在这种环境下，触觉似乎会取代视觉。数据揭示了自然条件下哺乳动物中显著的大脑可塑性。
