Cortical Responses To Single & Multi-Site Skin Stimuli

描述（由申请人提供）：本申请中提出的实验的主要目标是确定 SI 皮质神经电活动的维度，该维度可以解释（即，充当 SI 相关性）由单部位和多部位皮肤刺激的选定条件引起的感知体验。每个实验都将通过使用近红外光学固有信号（OIS）成像和单神经元尖峰放电活动的细胞外记录方法的新颖而强大的组合来获得对每种刺激条件的全局和单个神经元响应的测量。提出了两个系列的组合 OIS 成像/神经生理学记录实验。在第一个系列（系列 I）中，对于仅幅度不同的皮肤颤动刺激，将获得由单部位皮肤刺激引起的全局和单个神经元反应。本系列的每个实验都将使用与已发表的人类心理物理学研究中使用的相同的振幅范围，该研究涉及颤动振幅对感知强度的影响。系列 II 实验将评估 SI 对双部位皮肤颤动刺激的反应 - 他们将寻求识别 SI 与已确立的感知现象（例如空间压缩、强度调制等）的相关性，人类心理物理学研究已在多部位皮肤刺激的可比条件下证明了这些现象。总的来说，在系列 I 和 II 实验中获得的信息应该能够量化 SI 皮层内地形和细胞结构不同区域之间的刺激导向相互作用 - 具有相当大潜在功能重要性的相互作用，尽管是在理论基础上预测的，但迄今为止尚未在任何发表的实验研究中得到解决。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The primary goal of the experiments proposed in this application is to identify dimensions of SI cortical neuroelectrical activity that could account (i.e., serve as the SI correlate) for the perceptual experiences evoked by selected conditions of single- and multi-site skin stimulation. Every experiment will obtain measures of both the global and single neuron responses to each stimulus condition by using a novel and powerful combination of the methods of near-infrared optical intrinsic signal (OIS) imaging and extracellular recording of single neuron spike discharge activity. Two series of combined OIS imaging/neurophysiological recording experiments are proposed. In the first series (Series I), the global and single neuron responses evoked by single-site skin stimulation will be obtained for skin flutter stimuli that differ only in amplitude. Each experiment of this series will use the same range of amplitudes used in published human psychophysical studies of the effects of flutter amplitude on perceived intensity. The Series II experiments will evaluate the responses of SI to dual-site skin flutter stimulation - they will seek to identify SI correlates for well-established perceptual phenomena (e.g., spatial compression, intensity modulation, etc.) that human psychophysical studies have demonstrated under comparable conditions of multi-site skin stimulation. Collectively, the information obtained in the Series I and II experiments should enable quantification of stimulus-directed interactions between topographically and cytoarchitectonically distinct regions within SI cortex - interactions of considerable potential functional importance which although predicted on theoretical grounds, have not been addressed in any experimental study published to date.