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Full-Text Articles in Neuroscience and Neurobiology
Brain Representations Of Dexterous Hand Control: Investigating The Functional Organization Of Individuated Finger Movements And Somatosensory Integration, Spencer Arbuckle
Brain Representations Of Dexterous Hand Control: Investigating The Functional Organization Of Individuated Finger Movements And Somatosensory Integration, Spencer Arbuckle
Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository
Using our hands to manipulate objects in our daily life requires both dexterous movements and the integration of somatosensory information across fingers. Although the primary motor (M1) and somatosensory cortices (S1) are critical for these two complementary roles, it is unclear how neural populations in these regions functionally represent these processes. This thesis examined the functional organization of brain representations (the representational geometry) in M1 and S1 for dexterous hand control and somatosensory processing. To that end, representational geometries were estimated from fine-grained brain activity patterns measured with functional MRI (fMRI). Since fMRI measures a blood-based proxy of neural activity, …
Hierarchical Organization In Auditory Cortex Of The Cat Using High-Field Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Amee J. Hall
Hierarchical Organization In Auditory Cortex Of The Cat Using High-Field Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Amee J. Hall
Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository
Sensory localization within cortex is a widely accepted and documented principle. Within cortices dedicated to specific sensory information there is further organization. For example, in visual cortices a more detailed functional division and hierarchical organization has been recorded in detail. This organization starts with areas dedicated to analysis of simple visual stimuli. Areas higher in the organization are specialized for processing of progressively more complex stimuli. A similar hierarchical organization has been proposed within auditory cortex and a wealth of evidence supports this hypothesis. In the cat, the initial processing of simple auditory stimuli, such as pure tones, has been …
Brain Connectivity Studied By Fmri: Homologous Network Organization In The Rat, Monkey, And Human, R. Matthew Hutchison
Brain Connectivity Studied By Fmri: Homologous Network Organization In The Rat, Monkey, And Human, R. Matthew Hutchison
Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository
The mammalian brain is composed of functional networks operating at different spatial and temporal scales — characterized by patterns of interconnections linking sensory, motor, and cognitive systems. Assessment of brain connectivity has revealed that the structure and dynamics of large-scale network organization are altered in multiple disease states suggesting their use as diagnostic or prognostic indicators. Further investigation into the underlying mechanisms, organization, and alteration of large-scale brain networks requires homologous animal models that would allow neurophysiological recordings and experimental manipulations. My current dissertation presents a comprehensive assessment and comparison of rat, macaque, and human brain networks based on evaluation …
Decoding Motor Intentions From Human Brain Activity, Jason P. Gallivan
Decoding Motor Intentions From Human Brain Activity, Jason P. Gallivan
Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository
“You read my mind.” Although this simple everyday expression implies ‘knowledge or understanding’ of another’s thinking, true ‘mind-reading’ capabilities implicitly seem constrained to the domains of Hollywood and science-fiction. In the field of sensorimotor neuroscience, however, significant progress in this area has come from mapping characteristic changes in brain activity that occur prior to an action being initiated. For instance, invasive neural recordings in non-human primates have significantly increased our understanding of how highly cognitive and abstract processes like intentions and decisions are represented in the brain by showing that it is possible to decode or ‘predict’ upcoming sensorimotor …