The topographic brain: from neural connectivity to cognition

A hallmark feature of vertebrate brain organization is ordered topography, wherein sets of neuronal connections preserve the relative organization of cells between two regions. Although topography is often found in projections from peripheral sense organs to the brain, it also seems to participate i...

Ausführliche Beschreibung

Gespeichert in:
Bibliographische Detailangaben
Veröffentlicht in:Trends in neurosciences (Regular ed.) 2007-06, Vol.30 (6), p.251-259
Hauptverfasser: Thivierge, Jean-Philippe, Marcus, Gary F
Format: Artikel
Sprache:eng
Schlagworte:
Online-Zugang:Volltext
Tags: Tag hinzufügen
Keine Tags, Fügen Sie den ersten Tag hinzu!
Beschreibung
Zusammenfassung:A hallmark feature of vertebrate brain organization is ordered topography, wherein sets of neuronal connections preserve the relative organization of cells between two regions. Although topography is often found in projections from peripheral sense organs to the brain, it also seems to participate in the anatomical and functional organization of higher brain centers, for reasons that are poorly understood. We propose that a key function of topography might be to provide computational underpinnings for precise one-to-one correspondences between abstract cognitive representations. This perspective offers a novel conceptualization of how the brain approaches difficult problems, such as reasoning and analogy making, and suggests that a broader understanding of topographic maps could be pivotal in fostering strong links between genetics, neurophysiology and cognition.
ISSN:0166-2236
1878-108X
DOI:10.1016/j.tins.2007.04.004