title: Role of gap junctions in local rhythmogenesis in cortical columns.
abstract: Complex morphofunctional studies of the barrel cortex of the rat identified and analyzed the ultrastructural characteristics of the dendrodendritic electrical synapses--gap junctions (GJ)--of stellate neurons of barrels D2-D3. The local nature of dendrite branching of barrel cells, limited to the volume of the barrel, suggests that these GJ, which account for 7% of all synapses, may be the structural basis of local intrabarrel electrotonic synchronization of pacemaker potentials of barrel neuron hyperpolarization on development of spindle-type activity in the corresponding column.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neural Networks, A. B. Kogan Research Institute of Neurocybernetics, Southern Federal University, Rostov-on-Don, Russia. kirichenko_ey@land.ru
authors.forename: E Yu
authors.initials: EY
authors.lastname: Kirichenko
authors.forename: P E
authors.initials: PE
authors.lastname: Povilaitite
authors.forename: A G
authors.initials: AG
authors.lastname: Sukhov
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D003712:Dendrites / Q000502:physiology / Q000648:ultrastructure; D017629:Gap Junctions / Q000502:physiology* / Q000648:ultrastructure; D008839:Microelectrodes; D008854:Microscopy, Electron; D051381:Rats; D017208:Rats, Wistar; D013003:Somatosensory Cortex / Q000502:physiology* / Q000648:ultrastructure; D013569:Synapses / Q000502:physiology / Q000648:ultrastructure; D055366:Synaptic Potentials / Q000502:physiology*