title: Plumes of neuronal activity propagate in three dimensions through the nuclear avian brain.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  In mammals, the slow-oscillations of neuronal membrane potentials (reflected in the electroencephalogram as high-amplitude, slow-waves), which occur during non-rapid eye movement sleep and anesthesia, propagate across the neocortex largely as two-dimensional traveling waves. However, it remains unknown if the traveling nature of slow-waves is unique to the laminar cytoarchitecture and associated computational properties of the neocortex.
  
  
  RESULTS
  We demonstrate that local field potential slow-waves and correlated multiunit activity propagate as complex three-dimensional plumes of neuronal activity through the avian brain, owing to its non-laminar, nuclear neuronal cytoarchitecture.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The traveling nature of slow-waves is not dependent upon the laminar organization of the neocortex, and is unlikely to subserve functions unique to this pattern of neuronal organization. Finally, the three-dimensional geometry of propagating plumes may reflect computational properties not found in mammals that contributed to the evolution of nuclear neuronal organization and complex cognition in birds.
authors.affiliation: Avian Sleep Group, Max Planck Institute for Ornithology, Eberhard-Gwinner-Strasse 11, 82319 Seewiesen, Germany. G.J.L.Beckers@uu.nl.
authors.forename: Gabriël J L
authors.initials: GJ
authors.lastname: Beckers
authors.forename: Jacqueline
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: van der Meij
authors.forename: John A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Lesku
authors.forename: Niels C
authors.initials: NC
authors.lastname: Rattenborg
mesh_terms: D000200:Action Potentials / Q000502:physiology; D000818:Animals; D001921:Brain / Q000166:cytology* / Q000502:physiology*; D058256:Brain Waves / Q000502:physiology; D004566:Electrodes; D004569:Electroencephalography; D046369:Finches / Q000502:physiology*; D009474:Neurons / Q000502:physiology*; D016548:Prosencephalon / Q000502:physiology; D013997:Time Factors; D014741:Video Recording