SOMATOSENSORY CORTEX & THALAMUS

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This subproject is one of many research subprojects utilizing the resources provided by a Center grant funded by NIH/NCRR. The subproject and investigator (PI) may have received primary funding from another NIH source, and thus could be represented in other CRISP entries. The institution listed is for the Center, which is not necessarily the institution for the investigator. Objective: While area 5 has been considered a posterior parietal field involved exclusively in processing somatic inputs, recent evidence from our laboratory in both New World and Old World monkeys, as well as work from other laboratories, indicate that this cortical area is also involved in processing visual inputs, and is closely associated with the motor system. Accumulating evidence indicates that area 5 may be a "central planner" critical for monitoring limb location during intended reaching and grasping, converting sensory locations into motor coordinates for intentional movement, and in perceiving the movements of the body in extra personal space. The goal of the present investigation is to determine the role of posterior parietal area 5 in visually guided and non-visually guided reaching and grasping, object manipulation, bilateral coordination of the hands, and information transfer across the cerebral hemispheres. This study represents one of the first attempts to combine modern neuroanatomical, electrophysiological, and lesioning techniques to determine the contribution of a single cortical field involved in generating sophisticated hand use. Further, it is one of the few studies that utilizes electrophysiological and neuroanatomical techniques to examine the long-term cortical changes that occur after cortical damage, followed by behavioral training.