Requirements for neural assembly formation, ignition and maintenance: Possible role of laminar interactions

摘要

Computational analysis based on empirical data from the cortex suggests that the neuronal firing rates in neural assemblies necessary for their ignition and stable maintenance are implausibly high. However, those computations were based on the assumption that neural assemblies form in a block of cortical tissue which is homogeneous in terms of connectivity and physiological properties. A resolution of the impasse is suggested based on known differences between the superficial laminae (II/III) of the cerebral cortex, and lamina V. The new hypothesis makes use of the fact that these two layer of the cortex are reciprocally connected, and that lamina V neurones have firing rates many time higher than those of the relatively quiescent neurones in laminae II/III.]