Event Details:
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Brainwide sequences of activity
Abstract
Tantalizing observations in some cortical areas have revealed sequences of activation lasting 50-100 ms, where some neurons (leaders) tend to fire before others (followers). To investigate these sequences, we recorded in the mouse visual cortex, and found that neurons fire with diverse but reliable delays relative to the stimulus. Responses form a sequence, where a neuron’s participation depends on its visual preferences, but its position is invariable across images and over time (weeks). We then found that the neurons fire in similar sequences during spontaneous activity. This observation is intriguing by itself and useful because it allows us to test for the presence of sequences even in regions without a defined effective stimulus. We thus analyzed the brainwide neuronal recordings we had performed with the International Brain Laboratory. We discovered that the neuronal sequences of activation are present in every region of the mouse brain. Moreover, these sequences are often synchronized across regions. Taken together, these results suggest that sequences of activation form the backbone of neural computation across the brain.
Matteo Carandini, PhD
Professor of Visual Neuroscience, University College London (UCL) | he/him
Matteo Carandini is Professor of Visual Neuroscience at University College London, where he co-directs the Cortexlab with Kenneth Harris. His research focuses on the computations performed by large populations of neurons across the brain, the underlying circuits, and the resulting behavior. He is a member of the International Brain Laboratory, which studies the neural basis of decision-making across the mouse brain, and leader of the Neuropixels consortium, which develops probes to record from neural populations.
Hosted by Kwabena Boahen (Brains in Silicon Lab)
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About the Wu Tsai Neurosciences Seminar Series
The Wu Tsai Neurosciences Institute seminar series brings together the Stanford neuroscience community to discuss cutting-edge, cross-disciplinary brain research, from biochemistry to behavior and beyond.
Topics include new discoveries in fundamental neurobiology; advances in human and translational neuroscience; insights from computational and theoretical neuroscience; and the development of novel research technologies and neuro-engineering breakthroughs.
Unless otherwise noted, seminars are held Thursdays at 12:00 noon PT.