Rhythmic Modulation of Theta Oscillations Supports Encoding of Spatial and Behavioral Information in the Rat Hippocampus
Neuron. 2012-09-01; 75(5): 889-903
DOI: 10.1016/j.neuron.2012.06.036
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1. Neuron. 2012 Sep 6;75(5):889-903. doi: 10.1016/j.neuron.2012.06.036.
Rhythmic modulation of θ oscillations supports encoding of spatial and behavioral
information in the rat hippocampus.
Molter C(1), O’Neill J, Yamaguchi Y, Hirase H, Leinekugel X.
Author information:
(1)Université de Bordeaux, Institut des Maladies Neurodégénératives, UMR 5293,
F-33000 Bordeaux, France.
Oscillatory patterns of activity in various frequency ranges are ubiquitously
expressed in cortical circuits. While recent studies in humans emphasized
rhythmic modulations of neuronal oscillations (“second-order” rhythms), their
potential involvement in information coding remains an open question. Here, we
show that a rhythmic (~0.7 Hz) modulation of hippocampal theta power, unraveled
by second-order spectral analysis, supports encoding of spatial and behavioral
information. The phase preference of neuronal discharge within this slow rhythm
significantly increases the amount of information carried by action potentials in
various motor/cognitive behaviors by (1) distinguishing between the spikes fired
within versus outside the place field of hippocampal place cells, (2)
disambiguating place firing of neurons having multiple place fields, and (3)
predicting between alternative future spatial trajectories. This finding
demonstrates the relevance of second-order spectral components of brain rhythms
for decoding neuronal information.
Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
DOI: 10.1016/j.neuron.2012.06.036
PMID: 22958828 [Indexed for MEDLINE]