Behavioural correlates of combinatorial versus temporal features of odour codes.

ABSTRACT: Most sensory stimuli evoke spiking responses that are distributed across neurons and are temporally structured. Whether the temporal structure of ensemble activity is modulated to facilitate different neural computations is not known. Here, we investigated this issue in the insect olfactory system. We found that an odourant can generate synchronous or asynchronous spiking activity across a neural ensemble in the antennal lobe circuit depending on its relative novelty with respect to a preceding stimulus. Regardless of variations in temporal spiking patterns, the activated combinations of neurons robustly represented stimulus identity. Consistent with this interpretation, locusts reliably recognized both solitary and sequential introductions of trained odourants in a quantitative behavioura

SUBMITTER: Saha D 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4421803 | biostudies-literature | 2015 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature