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Receptor organ damage causes loss of cortical surround inhibition without topographic map plasticity

Nature Neuroscience volume 1, pages 138–143 (1998)Cite this article

Abstract

Following restricted peripheral damage, reorganization of adult sensory or motor cortex is believed to depend on loss of surround inhibition, which unmasks latent inputs to the deprived cortex. Here I demonstrate that limited damage to auditory receptors causes loss of functional surround inhibition in the cortex, unmasking of latent inputs and significantly altered neural coding. However, these changes do not lead to plasticity of the cortical map, defined by the most sensitive input from the receptor surface to each cortical location. Thus, in sensory cortex, loss of surround inhibition as a consequence of receptor organ damage does not necessarily result in cortical map plasticity.

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Figure 1: Restricted cochlear hearing losses result in a near-absence of cortical surround inhibition, which alters neuronal response patterns shaped by inhibition.
Figure 2: Loss of surround inhibition unmasks inputs.
Figure 3: Loss of surround inhibition does not alter cochleotopic CF maps in A1.

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Acknowledgements

This study was supported by grant No. 941006 from the National Health and Medical Research Council of Australia.

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  1. Department of Physiology, Monash University, Clayton, 3168, VIC, Australia

    R. Rajan

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Correspondence to R. Rajan.

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Rajan, R. Receptor organ damage causes loss of cortical surround inhibition without topographic map plasticity. Nat Neurosci 1, 138–143 (1998). https://doi.org/10.1038/388

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