THE DEVELOPMENT OF MULTISENSORY PROCESSES IN THE CEREBRAL CORTEX
Poster Presentation

Brian N. Carriere
Department of Neurobiology and Anatomy, Wafe Forest University Baptist Medical Center

*Jenna E. Schuster
Department of Neurobiology and Anatomy, Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center

*Thomas J. Perrault
Neural and Behavioral Sciences, Penn State University Medical Center

*J. William Vaughan
Department of Neurobiology and Anatomy, Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center

Barry E. Stein
Department of Neurobiology and Anatomy, Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center

*Mark T. Wallace
Department of Neurobiology and Anatomy, Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center

     Abstract ID Number: 145
     Full text: Not available
     Last modified: March 21, 2005

Abstract
Little is known about the maturation of multisensory processes that are likely to support perceptual functions. Therefore, we examined the development of multisensory neurons in a well-characterized multisensory cortical area, the anterior ectosylvian sulcus (AES) of the cat. Multisensory neurons are absent in AES at the earliest ages. At postnatal week 6, multisensory neurons first appear but are of very low incidence (< 5% of the population). The incidence of such neurons gradually rises over the ensuing 5 months, until adult-like values are achieved by 28 weeks postnatal. The earliest multisensory neurons are strikingly different from their adult counterparts, most notably in the large size of their receptive fields and their inability to integrate cross-modal cues. As development progresses, receptive fields consolidate, revealing excellent cross-modal register. However, most dramatic is the appearance of multisensory integration in these neurons, a capacity that appears to be tightly linked to receptive field maturation. Taken together, these results illustrate that the ability to integrate multisensory information is not an inherent characteristic of AES neurons, but rather requires a considerable period of postnatal development. Experiments are ongoing to examine whether a key feature in this developmental progression is the sensory experience gathered during this period.


Supported by NIH grants NS36916 and MH63861