Odors classified by networks of neurons
Monday, May 10, 2010 - 00:31
in Biology & Nature
Scientists in Switzerland are unraveling how odors are processed by the brain. As they report in a new study, odors in the olfactory brain are classified into groups represented by discrete activity states of neuronal circuits. Using advanced optical methods, they discovered that gradual variations in odors result in abrupt transitions between patterns of neuronal activity. These findings provide fundamental insights into the brain's information-processing mechanisms.