The DOI matches its Crossref record; 215 of the 215 references it cites were found in a registry or an index.
The detection and generation of sequences as a key to cerebellar function: Experiments and theory
Abstract
Starting from macroscopic and microscopic facts of cerebellar histology, we propose a new functional interpretation that may elucidate the role of the cerebellum in movement control. The idea is that the cerebellum is a large collection of individual lines (Eccles's "beams": Eccles et al. 1967a) that respond specifically to certain sequences of events in the input and in turn produce sequences of signals in the output. We believe that the sequence-in/sequence-out mode of operation is as typical for the cerebellar cortex as the transformation of sets into sets of active neurons is typical for the cerebral cortex, and that both the histological differences between the two and their reciprocal functional interactions become understandable in the light of this dichotomy. The response of Purkinje cells to sequences of stimuli in the mossy fiber system was shown experimentally by Heck on surviving slices of rat and guinea pig cerebellum. Sequential activation of a row of eleven stimulating electrodes in the granular layer, imitating a "movement" of the stimuli along the folium, produces a powerful volley in the parallel fibers that strongly excites Purkinje cells, as evidenced by intracellular recording. The volley, or "tidal wave," has maximal amplitude when the stimulus moves toward the recording site at the speed of conduction in parallel fibers, and much smaller amplitudes for lower or higher "velocities." The succession of stimuli has no effect when they "move" in the opposite direction. Synchronous activation of the stimulus electrodes also had hardly any effect. We believe that the sequences of mossy fiber activation that normally produce this effect in the intact cerebellum are a combination of motor planning relayed to the cerebellum by the cerebral cortex, and information about ongoing movement, reaching the cerebellum from the spinal cord. The output elicited by the specific sequence to which a "beam" is tuned may well be a succession of well timed inhibitory volleys "sculpting" the motor sequences so as to adapt them to the complicated requirements of the physics of a multijointed system.
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“The specific arrangement of parallel fibers and Purkinje cells in the cerebellar cortex forms a network that specifically detects precisely timed sequences of input activity and generates precisely timed output activity in response [223–225].”
From Consensus Paper: Pathological Role of the Cerebellum in Autism (2012) · cites this paper as [225]
Citations
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Metadata
- Authors
- Braitenberg, V., Heck, D., & Sultan, F.
- Affiliations
- Max Planck Institute for Biological Cybernetics (DE)
- University of Freiburg (DE)
- Universitätsklinikum Tübingen (DE)
- Venue
- Behavioral and Brain Sciences
- Publisher
- Cambridge University Press (CUP)
- Published
- 1997-06
- Volume
- 20
- Issue
- 2
- Pages
- 229-245
- ISSN
- 0140-525X (ISSN-L)
- 1469-1825
- OpenAlex
- W2149256244
- Cited by
- 298
- References
- 215
- Citations by year
- 2026: 2 · 2025: 6 · 2024: 3 · 2023: 5 · 2022: 7 · 2021: 8 · 2020: 8 · 2019: 10 · 2018: 4 · 2017: 9 · 2016: 9 · 2015: 8 · 2014: 16 · 2013: 12 · 2012: 7
- FWCI
- 8.16
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Behavioral and Brain Sciences (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- University of Birmingham Research Portal (University of Birmingham) (submittedVersion)
- MPG.PuRe (Max Planck Society) (submittedVersion)
- Topics
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Motor Control and Adaptation
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Neurology › Vestibular and auditory disorders
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Memory and Neural Mechanisms
- Keywords
- cerebellar function, sequence detection, sequence generation, cerebellar cortex, Purkinje cells, parallel fibers, tsunami, motor control, motor planning, cerebellar histology
- MeSH terms
- Animals, Cerebellum, Learning, Models, Biological, Movement, Neurons, Purkinje Cells, Time Factors, Rats
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