Cited by 579Neural dynamics and brain functionNeuroscience and Neuropharmacology ResearchNeurological disorders and treatments

Brain rhythms and neural syntax: implications for efficient coding of cognitive content and neuropsychiatric disease.

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Buzsáki, György, Watson, Brendon O.·2012·Dialogues in Clinical Neuroscience

Abstract

The perpetual activity of the cerebral cortex is largely supported by the variety of oscillations the brain generates, spanning a number of frequencies and anatomical locations, as well as behavioral correlates. First, we review findings from animal studies showing that most forms of brain rhythms are inhibition-based, producing rhythmic volleys of inhibitory inputs to principal cell populations, thereby providing alternating temporal windows of relatively reduced and enhanced excitability in neuronal networks. These inhibition-based mechanisms offer natural temporal frames to group or "chunk" neuronal activity into cell assemblies and sequences of assemblies, with more complex multi-oscillation interactions creating syntactical rules for the effective exchange of information among cortical networks. We then review recent studies in human psychiatric patients demonstrating a variety alterations in neural oscillations across all major psychiatric diseases, and suggest possible future research directions and treatment approaches based on the fundamental properties of brain rhythms.

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Crossref · 10.31887/dcns.2012.14.4/gbuzsaki

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  • SOHM dynamics may help explain why oscillations tend to occur at faster rates in organisms with smaller brains, because smaller systems are likely to arrive at synchronous equilibria more quickly.

    “SOHM dynamics may help to explain many kinds of rhythmic phenomena, such as the fact that oscillations tend to occur at faster rates in organisms with smaller brains (Buzsáki and Watson, 2012); all else being equal, smaller systems are likely to arrive at synchronous equilibria more quickly, with larger systems requiring relatively more time for synchronizing their micro-dynamics.”

    From An Integrated World Modeling Theory (IWMT) of Consciousness (2020) · cites this paper as Buzsáki and Watson, 2012

    In “Preservation of brain rhythms in the mammalian order” (page not supplied), the paper says hippocampal theta oscillations are perhaps the only known rhythm whose frequency scales inversely with brain size. It also says brain-rhythm frequencies vary little across mammals, so the cited source supports the theta example, not the broader claim that oscillations generally tend to be faster in smaller-brained organisms. The sentence presents the synchronous-equilibria explanation as the citing authors’ own reasoning, not as a claim from this source. (LLM, conf=0.87)

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Research works printed but not linked: 22

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Authors
Buzsáki, G., & Watson, B. O.
Affiliations
  • New York University (US)
  • Weill Cornell Medicine (US)
Corresponding author
Buzsáki, György
Venue
Dialogues in Clinical Neuroscience
Published
2012-12-31
Volume
14
Issue
4
Pages
345-367
ISSN
  • 1294-8322 (ISSN-L)
  • 1958-5969
OpenAlex
W4214953342
Cited by
579
References
233
Citations by year
2026: 37 · 2025: 47 · 2024: 40 · 2023: 36 · 2022: 64 · 2021: 61 · 2020: 50 · 2019: 48 · 2018: 41 · 2017: 33 · 2016: 47 · 2015: 34 · 2014: 24 · 2013: 9
FWCI
10.98
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • Dialogues in Clinical Neuroscience (publishedVersion, cc-by-nc-nd)
  • Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (publishedVersion, cc-by-nc-nd)
  • PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by-nc-nd)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed
Funders
National Institute of Mental Health (R01MH054671)
Topics
  • Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Neural dynamics and brain function
  • Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cellular and Molecular Neuroscience › Neuroscience and Neuropharmacology Research
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Neurology › Neurological disorders and treatments
Keywords
neural oscillations, efficient coding, neuronal excitability, cell assemblies, cortical networks, mental illness, neuropsychiatric disorders, neuromodulation
MeSH terms
Animals, Mental Disorders, Brain, Cognition, Cortical Synchronization, Humans, Periodicity

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