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The modular organization of the cerebral cortex: Evolutionary significance and possible links to neurodevelopmental conditions
Author(s) -
Casanova Manuel F.,
Casanova Emily L.
Publication year - 2019
Publication title -
journal of comparative neurology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.855
H-Index - 209
eISSN - 1096-9861
pISSN - 0021-9967
DOI - 10.1002/cne.24554
Subject(s) - neuroscience , modular design , biology , cerebral cortex , variety (cybernetics) , cortex (anatomy) , process (computing) , selection (genetic algorithm) , information processing , modularity (biology) , neocortex , computer science , evolutionary biology , artificial intelligence , operating system
The recognition of discernible anatomical regularities that appear to self‐organize during development makes apparent the modular organization of the cerebral cortex. The metabolic cost engendered in sustaining interneuronal communications has emphasized the viability of short connections among neighboring neurons. This pattern of connectivity establishes a microcircuit which is repeated in parallel throughout the cerebral cortex. This canonical circuit is contained within the smallest module of information processing of the cerebral cortex; one which Vernon Mountcastle called the minicolumn. Plasticity within the brain is accounted, in part, by the presence of weak linkages that allow minicolumns to process information from a variety of sources and to quickly adapt to environmental exigencies without a need for genetic change. Recent research suggests that interlaminar correlated firing between minicolumns during the decision phase of target selection provides for the emergence of some executive functions. Bottlenecks of information processing within this modular minicolumnar organization may account for a variety of mental disorders observed in neurodevelopmental conditions.