Morphological characteristics of neocortical laminae when studied in tangential semithin sections through the visual cortex of the rabbit

Schmolke, Cordula; Fleischhauer, K.

doi:10.1007/bf00303141

Cited by 25 publications

(17 citation statements)

References 6 publications

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“…2A). There is agreement by Peters and Fleischhauer and their associates (12,13) that the apical bundles or clusters diagrammatically shown in Fig. 2B are the basic anatomical units of the neocortex.…”

Section: Neocortical Activitysupporting

confidence: 59%

Quantum aspects of brain activity and the role of consciousness.

Beck

Eccles

1992

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

246

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The relationship of brain activity to conscious intentions is considered on the basis of the functional microstructure of the cerebral cortex. Each ming nerve impulse causes the emission of transmitter molecules by the process of exocytosis. Since exocytosis is a quantal phenomenon of the presynaptic vesicular grid with a probability much less than 1, we present a quantum mechanical model for It based on a tunneling process of the trigger mechanism. Consciousness manifests itself in mental intentions. The consequent voluntary actions become effective by momentary increases of the probability of vesicular emission in the thousands of synapses on each pyramidal cell by quantal selection.There has been an increasing interest in the relations of quantum mechanics, brain activities, and consciousness (1-4). On the part ofquantum physics the impetus came from the interpretation of the measuring process, which is still on debate, even after more than 60 years of overwhelmingly successful applications ofquantum theory. However, there is the question from neuroscience (5) whether quantum action is needed to understand the functioning of the brain in its subtle relations to experience, memory, and consciousness.It was Wigner (6), in his stringent analysis of the consequences of measurements in a Stern-Gerlach experiment, who first speculated that the von Neumann collapse of the wave function (7) actually occurs by an act of consciousness in the human brain and is not describable in terms ofordinary quantum mechanics. More recently similar ideas were put forward and partly combined with Everett's "many-world" interpretation (8) of quantum theory (2). Other authors (e.g., ref. 1) have related quantum theory to consciousness on the basis of the usual interpretation of the state vector as a superposition of actualities [or "propensities," in Popper's nomenclature (9)]. Not much connection has been made, however, to the empirically established facts of brain physiology, nor have those authors attempted to locate a quantal process in the functional microsites of the neocortex.In this work we contribute to filling this gap by putting forward a quantum mechanical description of bouton exocytosis. The next section gives an outline of the structure and activity of the neocortex as introduction to the quantum mechanical model. This is set up in the subsequent section.

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Section: Neocortical Activitysupporting

confidence: 59%

Quantum aspects of brain activity and the role of consciousness.

Beck

Eccles

1992

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

246

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“…In rat somatosensory cortex they are 50 Ìm [Peters and Walsh, 1972]. c Rabbit VI, 40-45 Ìm [Fleischauer et al, 1972;Schmolke and Fleischauer, 1984;Schmolke andViebahn, 1986, Schmolke, 1989]. d Cat V1, 56 Ìm; cat somatosensory and auditory, 50-70 Ìm [Feldman and Peters, 1974].…”

Section: B Defining the Minicolumnmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Minicolumn and Evolution of the Brain

Buxhoeveden¹,

Casanova²

2002

Brain Behav Evol

112

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The minicolumn is generally considered an elementary unit of the neocortex in all mammalian brains. This essential building block has been affected by changes in the circuitry of the cortex during evolution. Researchers believe that enlargement of the cortical surface occurs through the addition of minicolumns rather than of single neurons. Therefore, minicolumns integrate cortical encephalization with organization. Despite these insights, few studies have analyzed the morphometry of the minicolumn to detect subtle but important differences among the brains of diverse mammals. The notion that minicolumns are essentially unchanged across species is challenged by strong evidence to the contrary. Because they are subject to species-specific variation, they can be used as a way to study evolutionary changes. Unfortunately, comparative studies are marred by a lack of standardized techniques, tissue preparation, cortical regions, or anatomical feature studied. However, recent advances in methodology enable standardized, quantified comparisons of minicolumn morphology.

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“…3 a). There is agreement by Fleischhauer, Peters and their associates (Schmolke and Fleischhauer, 1984;Peters and Kara, 1987) that the apical bundles of dendrites, schematically shown in Fig. 3 b, are the basic anatomical units of the neocortex.…”

Section: Quantum Vs Classical Brain Dynamicsmentioning

confidence: 65%

Synaptic Quantum Tunnelling in Brain Activity

Beck

2008

Neuroquantology

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In the struggle about the role of monism and dualism as basic concepts of the mind-brain relation, the indeterminacy of quantum events has led an increasing number of authors to postulate quantum brain dynamics as the key towards a scientific understanding of consciousness. In most cases some specific form of macroscopic quantum states in the brain are invoked without giving details for their occurrence or persistence. This raises immediately the question, how such states could survive thermal fluctuations in the hot and wet brain environment. In this paper we present a model for a quantum mechanical trigger which regulates synaptic exocytosis, the regulator for ordered brain activity. The model is based on a quantum mechanical tunnelling process which is stable against thermal fluctuations and consistent with the physiological conditions of the synaptic membrane.

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Morphological characteristics of neocortical laminae when studied in tangential semithin sections through the visual cortex of the rabbit

Cited by 25 publications

References 6 publications

Quantum aspects of brain activity and the role of consciousness.

Quantum aspects of brain activity and the role of consciousness.

The Minicolumn and Evolution of the Brain

Synaptic Quantum Tunnelling in Brain Activity

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