title: Population response characteristics of intrinsic signals in the cat somatosensory cortex following canine mechanical stimulation.
abstract: Intrinsic signal optical imaging has been widely used to measure functional maps in various sensory cortices due to better spatial resolution and sensitivity for detecting cortical neuroplasticity. However, application of this technique in dentistry has not been reported. In this study, intrinsic signal optical imaging was used to investigate mechanically driven responses in the cat somatosensory cortex, when punctate mechanical stimuli were applied to maxillary canines. The global signal and its spatial organization pattern were obtained. Global signal strength gradually increased with stimulus strength. There was no significant difference in response strength between contralateral and ipsilateral mechanical stimulation. A slightly greater response was recorded in the sigmoidal gyrus than in the coronal gyrus. The cat somatosensory cortex activated by sensory inputs from mechanical stimulation of canines lacks both topographical and functional organization. It is not organized into columns that represent sensory input from each tooth or direction of stimulation. These results demonstrate that intrinsic signal optical imaging is a valid tool for investigating neural responses and neuroplasticity in the somatosensory cortex that represents teeth.
authors.affiliation: Shanghai Engineering Research Center of Tooth Restoration and Regeneration, Department of Prosthodontics, School of Stomatology, Tongji University, Shanghai 200072, China.
authors.forename: Jianxiang
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Tao
authors.affiliation: Vision Research Laboratory, School of Life Sciences, The State Key Laboratory of Medical Neurobiology, Collaborative Innovation Center for Brain Science, Fudan University, Shanghai 200433, China.
authors.forename: Jian
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Vision Research Laboratory, School of Life Sciences, The State Key Laboratory of Medical Neurobiology, Collaborative Innovation Center for Brain Science, Fudan University, Shanghai 200433, China.
authors.forename: Zhong
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: Vision Research Laboratory, School of Life Sciences, The State Key Laboratory of Medical Neurobiology, Collaborative Innovation Center for Brain Science, Fudan University, Shanghai 200433, China.
authors.forename: Jianjun
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Meng
authors.affiliation: Vision Research Laboratory, School of Life Sciences, The State Key Laboratory of Medical Neurobiology, Collaborative Innovation Center for Brain Science, Fudan University, Shanghai 200433, China. Electronic address: hongboyu@fudan.edu.cn.
authors.forename: Hongbo
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Yu
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002415:Cats; D003481:Cuspid / Q000502:physiology*; D005073:Evoked Potentials, Somatosensory; D016014:Linear Models; D061848:Optical Imaging; D010812:Physical Stimulation; D013003:Somatosensory Cortex / Q000098:blood supply / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000502:physiology*; D055698:Touch Perception / Q000502:physiology*
keywords: brain; cuspid; evoked potentials; neuroimaging; optical devices; physical stimulation