SENSORIMOTOR CORTEX IN PROSIMIAN PRIMATE

这些多学科研究的长期目标是 躯体感觉系统的结构和功能 原猿类灵长类，Galago，是为了了解初级（SI） 和大脑皮层中的次级（SII）投射区 有助于区分触觉刺激的能力 手 最近的行为，生理和解剖学研究 幼年和成年的加拉哥和猕猴，已经导致了各种各样的 关于并行与串行感觉处理的问题， 灵长类动物的躯体感觉系统。 我们最近的生理 对加拉哥的研究提供了一张手和身体的详细地图 在SII和SI的完整的身体地图。 海关将继续执行严厉 神经定量研究，使用新的纹理刺激器，我们 开发，正在研究响应特性的差异 和SII神经元之间。 在行为研究中，我们已经建立了 成年Galago的标准触觉能力水平， 与猕猴和新世界猴子相比， 成年人与SI和SII去除相关的行为缺陷 加拉格 幼年原羚Sl和SII病变的初步研究 (in同意我们的研究婴儿猕猴）显示恢复或 在SI或SII损伤后的触觉损伤后保留。 我们 对成年Galago的解剖学研究表明， 成年人丘脑对SI和SII的投射，但我们最近的研究表明， 发现SI和SII的重叠轴突侧支的模式， 小加拉哥 根据这些最新发现， 研究旨在证明恢复（或保留） 婴儿Sl和SII损伤后的触觉功能， 婴儿的丘脑皮质连接模式， 成人，并研究如何维持正常短暂的 侧支可为正常触觉提供神经基础 在幼年灵长类动物损伤后的功能。 Galago提供 鉴于我们对这些研究的了解， 简单的皮质组织和丘脑皮质连接 成年和快速发展的婴儿在这个灵长类物种。 我们希望对不同年龄的加拉哥的研究可以表明：1）a 婴儿的触觉功能恢复比 成年动物; 2）丘脑投射丰富的侧枝， 正常婴儿但非成人的BI和SII; 3）维持 短暂的丘脑皮质轴突在SI或SII病变，但不是 正常的婴儿可能提供恢复的机制， 灵长类婴儿脑损伤后的功能保留。

The long-term objective of these multidisciplinary studies of the structure and function of the somatic sensory system in the prosimian primate, Galago, is to understand how the primary (SI) and secondary (SII) projection areas in the cerebral cortex contribute to the capacity to discriminate tactile stimuli with the hand. Recent behavioral, physiological and anatomical studies of infant and adult Galago, and Macaca, have led to a variety of questions about parallel vs. serial sensory processing in the somatic sensory system in primates. Our recent physiological studies on Galago have provided a detailed map of the hand and body in SII and a complete body map in SI. Our on-going neuroquantatative studies, using the new texture stimulator we developed, are examining the differences in response properties between and SII neurons. In behavioral studies we have established the level of normative tactile capacity of adult Galago, as compared to Macaca and New World monkeys, and measured the behavioral deficits associated with SI and SII removals in adult Galago. Preliminary studies of Sl and SII lesions in infant Galago (in agreement with our studies of infant Macaca) show recovery or sparing after tactile damage after SI or SII damage. Our anatomical studies of adult Galago have shown a pattern independent thalamic projections to SI and SII in adults but our recent studies find pattern of overlapping axon collaterals to SI and SII in infant Galago. Based on these recent findings the proposed research is designed to demonstrate recovery (or sparing) of tactile function after Sl and SII lesions in infants, to examine the patterns of thalamocortical connections in the infant and adult, and to investigate how maintenance of normally-transient collaterals may provide the neural basis for normal tactile function following lesions in infant primates. The Galago provides an ideal preparation for these studies given our knowledge of the simple cortical organization and thalamocortical connections in the adult and the rapid development infants in this primate species. We expect that studies of Galago at different ages may show: 1) a greater recovery of tactile function in the infant than in the adult animal; 2) abundant collaterals of thalamic projections to BI and SII in normal infants but not adults; 3) maintenance of transient thalamocortical axons in the SI- or SII-lesioned, but not the normal, infant that may provide the mechanism for recovery or sparing of function following brain damage in the infant primate.