BEGIN:VCALENDAR
VERSION:2.0
PRODID:-//Memento EPFL//
BEGIN:VEVENT
SUMMARY:Synaptic mechanisms of sensory perception
DTSTART:20090330T120000
DTSTAMP:20260609T204543Z
UID:f984f143aad06da218c0682b413b06080eb7ef2a9e6914d0c9a044b5
CATEGORIES:Conferences - Seminars
DESCRIPTION:Dr Carl Petersen\nA key goal of modern neuroscience is to unde
 rstand the neural circuits and the synaptic mechanisms underlying simple f
 orms of sensory perception and associative learning. Here\, I will discuss
  our efforts to characterise sensory processing in the mouse barrel cortex
 \, a brain region known to process tactile information relating to the whi
 skers on the snout. Each whisker is individually represented in the primar
 y somatosensory neocortex by an anatomical unit termed a ‘barrel’. The
  barrels are arranged in a stereotypical map\, which allows recordings and
  manipulations to be targeted with remarkable precision. In this cortical 
 region it may therefore be feasible to gain a quantitative understanding o
 f neocortical function.\n\nAs a mouse explores its environment\, the whisk
 ers are actively moved backwards and forwards as if searching the space fo
 r tactile input. Indeed sensory information in this pathway is usually act
 ively acquired. It is therefore crucial to measure and manipulate cortical
  function in awake behaving mice. We have begun this process using whole-c
 ell recordings\, voltage-sensitive dye imaging\, viral manipulations and t
 wo-photon microscopy. Through combining these techniques with behavioural 
 training\, our experiments provide new insight into sensory perception at 
 the level of individual neurons and their synaptic connections.
LOCATION:SV1717a
STATUS:CONFIRMED
END:VEVENT
END:VCALENDAR