Location:
Munzer Auditorium,
Title: "The
Cerebral Cortex: Quantitative Neuroanatomy as a Key
to Cortical Function"
Research Scientist
Max Planck
Abstact:
Nerve cells are both tiny
(micrometers) and large (millimeters up to meters,
the range of their ramifications). In the central nervous system, they are
densely packed and their thin processes are intermingled to form very dense
networks. This implies that even though all the details of a nerve net may be
seen on histological sections, global aspects of connectivity cannot be
detected directly under the microscope. It is possible, however, to derive
aspects of connectivity from statistical measurements of the various components
in the tissue.
In this talk, I will summarize
our quantitative anatomical work on the mouse cortex. It will also be shown to
what degree the results can be generalized to larger brains. These data,
combined with quantities deduced from them, give a comprehensive picture of the
basic connectivity of the cortex. On the basis of this picture, I will emphazise the aspects of connectivity in which the cortex
fundamentally differs from other parts of the brain. The results presented lead
to conclusions about basic mechanisms in the cortex and can help to decide
between theories of cortical function.