title: Brain rhythms and neural syntax: implications for efficient coding of cognitive content and neuropsychiatric disease.
abstract: The perpetual activity of the cerebral cortex is largely supported by the variety of oscillations the brain generates, spanning a number of frequencies and anatomical locations, as well as behavioral correlates. First, we review findings from animal studies showing that most forms of brain rhythms are inhibition-based, producing rhythmic volleys of inhibitory inputs to principal cell populations, thereby providing alternating temporal windows of relatively reduced and enhanced excitability in neuronal networks. These inhibition-based mechanisms offer natural temporal frames to group or "chunk" neuronal activity into cell assemblies and sequences of assemblies, with more complex multi-oscillation interactions creating syntactical rules for the effective exchange of information among cortical networks. We then review recent studies in human psychiatric patients demonstrating a variety alterations in neural oscillations across all major psychiatric diseases, and suggest possible future research directions and treatment approaches based on the fundamental properties of brain rhythms.
authors: NYU Neuroscience Institute, School of Medicine, New York University, New York, NY 10016, USA. gyorgy.buzsaki@nyumc.org
authors: György
authors: G
authors: Buzsáki
authors: Brendon O
authors: BO
authors: Watson
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001921:Brain / Q000502:physiology*; D003071:Cognition / Q000502:physiology; D003344:Cortical Synchronization / Q000502:physiology; D006801:Humans; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000503:physiopathology*; D010507:Periodicity
keywords: action potential; assembly; brain; coding; neuron; oscillation; psychiatry
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