The organization and mutability of the forepaw and hindpaw representations in the somatosensory cortex of the neonatal rat
- 8 February 1987
- journal article
- research article
- Published by Wiley in Journal of Comparative Neurology
- Vol. 256 (2), 246-256
- https://doi.org/10.1002/cne.902560205
Abstract
The present study demonstrates that the primary somatosensory cortex of the rat contains a map of the entire body surface that is discernible with a routine anatomical staining technique, the succinic dehydrogenase reaction. The overall proportions of this map are relatively constant from rat to rat and very similar to those reported in previous physiological investigations (Welker: Brain Res. 26:259–275, '71, J. Comp. Neurol. 166:173–190, '76). We found 67% of the map to be related to the head of the rat, 15% to the forelimb, 14% to the trunk, and 4% to the hindlimb. Within the forelimb and indlimb representations, there is a consistent internal organization that can be related to specific peripheral structures (digits or palm pads). Further, damage to either the periphery or the nerves innervating these regions on the day of birth produces disruptions in the normal pattern, but damage on day 6 or later does not. We interpret these results as indicating that the role of the periphery in organizing central neuronal structures during development previously demonstrated for the trigeminal system extends to the entire rat somatosensory system. Comparison of the present results with physiological studies of adult cortical maps after peripheral damage suggests to us that different substrates underlie the changes reported in the adult.Keywords
This publication has 26 references indexed in Scilit:
- Degeneration and regeneration of peripheral nerve in the rat trigeminal system. I. Identification and characterization of the multiple afferent innervation of the mystacial vibrissaeJournal of Comparative Neurology, 1986
- The organization of the neonatal rat's brainstem trigeminal complex and its role in the formation of central trigeminal patternsJournal of Comparative Neurology, 1985
- Somatosensory cortical map changes following digit amputation in adult monkeysJournal of Comparative Neurology, 1984
- Effects of neonatal whisker lesions on mouse central trigeminal pathwaysJournal of Comparative Neurology, 1984
- The somatosensory cortex of the rodentTrends in Neurosciences, 1983
- Reorganization of raccoon somatosensory cortex following removal of the fifth digitJournal of Comparative Neurology, 1982
- The distribution of commissural terminations in somatosensory areas I and II of the grey squirrelJournal of Comparative Neurology, 1981
- Vibrissae representation in subcortical trigeminal centers of the neonatal ratJournal of Comparative Neurology, 1979
- Organization of corticocortical connections in the parietal cortex of the ratJournal of Comparative Neurology, 1978
- Receptive fields of barrels in the somatosensory neocortex of the ratJournal of Comparative Neurology, 1976