Journal of Neurophysiology

Hadjidimitrakis, Kostas

doi: 10.1152/jn.00099.2020pmid: 32233904

Does arm reaching affect eye-head shifts? Does the head alter eye-hand coordinated movements? Sensorimotor research has focused on either eye-head or eye-hand coordination, with only occasional works studying all these effectors together. Arora et al. (Arora HK, Bharmauria V, Yan X, Sun S, Wang H, Crawford JD. J Neurophysiol 122: 1946–1961, 2019) examined eye-head-hand coordination for the first time in nonhuman primates and provide evidence suggesting that head and hand movements are more coupled than traditionally considered.

Romagnoni, Alberto; Colonnese, Matthew T.; Touboul, Jonathan D.; Gutkin, Boris S.

doi: 10.1152/jn.00402.2019pmid: 32049596

Relying on a generalization of the Wilson–Cowan model, which allows a solid analytic foundation for the understanding of the link between maturation of inhibition and network dynamics, we propose a potential explanation for the role of developing excitatory/inhibitory synaptic delays in mediating a sudden switch in thalamocortical visual activity preceding vision onset.

Stokes, William; Runnalls, Keith; Choynowki, Jake; St. Pierre, Maria; Anaya, Manuel; Statton, Matthew A.; Celnik, Pablo A.; Cantarero, Gabriela

doi: 10.1152/jn.00774.2019pmid: 32073936

We are the first to assess corticomotor latencies and motor neuroplasticity in a common group of collegiate athletes across different phases of injury and recovery. We found that the number of concussions an individual sustains negatively impacts corticomotor latencies with a higher number of prior concussions correlating positively with longer latencies. Our findings indicate that concussions may lead to permanent changes in the corticospinal tract that are exacerbated by repeated injury.

Bertalmío, Marcelo; Calatroni, Luca; Franceschi, Valentina; Franceschiello, Benedetta; Gomez Villa, Alexander; Prandi, Dario

doi: 10.1152/jn.00488.2019pmid: 32159409

We show that the Wilson–Cowan equations can reproduce a number of brightness and orientation-dependent illusions. Then we formally prove that there cannot be an energy functional that the Wilson–Cowan equations are minimizing, making them suboptimal with respect to the efficient representation principle. We thus propose a slight modification that is consistent with such principle and show that this provides a better reproduction of visual illusions than the original Wilson–Cowan formulation. We also consider the cortical extension of both models to deal with more complex orientation-dependent illusions.

Sheth, Chandni; Prescot, Andrew P.; Legarreta, Margaret; Renshaw, Perry F.; McGlade, Erin; Yurgelun-Todd, Deborah

doi: 10.1152/jn.00765.2019pmid: 32186438

In this study of veterans, we used a state-of-the-art neuroimaging tool to probe the neurometabolic profile of the anterior cingulate cortex in veterans with traumatic brain injury (TBI). We report significantly elevated myoinositol levels in veterans with TBI compared with those without TBI.

Bland, Nicholas S.; Mattingley, Jason B.; Sale, Martin V.

doi: 10.1152/jn.00755.2019pmid: 32186427

Using a multiple object tracking paradigm, we were able to manipulate the need for interhemispheric integration on a per-trial basis, while also having an objective measure of integration efficacy (i.e., tracking performance). We show that tracking performance reflects a cost of integration, which correlates with individual differences in interhemispheric EEG coherence. Gamma coherence appears to uniquely benefit between-hemifield tracking, predicting performance both across participants and across trials.

Chow, Carson C.; Karimipanah, Yahya

doi: 10.1152/jn.00404.2019pmid: 32186441

The Wilson–Cowan equations represent a landmark in the history of computational neuroscience. Along with the insights Wilson and Cowan offered for neuroscience, they crystallized an approach to modeling neural dynamics and brain function. Although their iconic equations are used in various guises today, the ideas that led to their formulation and the relationship to other approaches are not well known. Here, we give a little context to some of the biological and theoretical concepts that lead to the Wilson–Cowan equations and discuss how to extend beyond them.

Thaweerattanasinp, Theeradej; Birch, Derin; Jiang, Mingchen C.; Tresch, Matthew C.; Bennett, David J.; Heckman, Charles J.; Tysseling, Vicki M.

doi: 10.1152/jn.00701.2019pmid: 32208883

We investigate the firing characteristics of bursting deep dorsal horn (DDH) neurons following chronic spinal transection. DDH neurons in the chronic stage are different from those in the acute stage as noted by their increase in excitability overall and their differing responses serotonin (5-HT) and N-methyl-d-aspartate (NMDA) receptor agonists. Also, there is a strong relationship between DDH neuron activity and ventral root output. These results support a contribution of the bursting DDH neurons to muscle spasms following chronic spinal cord injury (SCI).

Nokia, Miriam S.; Waselius, Tomi; Sahramäki, Joonas; Penttonen, Markku

doi: 10.1152/jn.00056.2020pmid: 32208887

We studied hippocampal sharp-wave ripples and theta and CA1 pyramidal cell activity during trace eyeblink conditioning in rabbits. Conditioning trials suppressed ripples while increasing theta for a period of several seconds. A quarter of the cells increased firing in response to the conditioned stimulus and fired extensively during endogenous theta as well as ripples. The role of endogenous theta epochs in off-line memory consolidation should be studied further.

Brandenburg, Joline E.; Fogarty, Matthew J.; Brown, Alyssa D.; Sieck, Gary C.

doi: 10.1152/jn.00026.2020pmid: 32233911

Phrenic motor neuron (PhMN) development in early onset hypertonia is poorly understood. Yet, respiratory disorders are a common cause of morbidity and mortality. In spa mice, an animal model of early onset hypertonia, we found ~30% fewer PhMNs, compared with controls. This PhMN loss disproportionately affected larger PhMNs. Thus, the number and heterogeneity of the PhMN pool are decreased in spa mice, likely contributing to the hypertonia, impaired neuromotor control, and respiratory disorders.