Dear potential authors on the comp-neuro mailing list,
This is a call for participation at a special issue (Frontiers Topic) on
neural synchronization, that we are currently editing:
'Large-scale neural synchronization and coordinated dynamics: a
foundational approach'
Description:
A fundamental question in neuroscience is how segregation and integration
of information takes place by the temporal coordination of differentiated,
specialized brain areas. Neural synchronization is often invoked as a mechanism
of coordinated activity, and in the last ten years there has been a great
effort to understand its significance, to clarify its physiological and
computational roles and its relationship with brain rhythms and abnormal brain
functioning (as in epilepsy or Parkinson’s disease).
But in a broader sense, synchronization is an old concept, arising from the
studies of oscillators in non-linear dynamics. It is indeed a widespread
phenomenon, reflecting the coupling between self-oscillating units. However,
the association between coupling and coordinated activity is not completely
understood in the context of brain dynamics, most critically when this
relationship is extended to large networks of interacting neurons. What do we
mean when we use the term ‘synchronization’ in neuroscience? How can we measure
physical coupling when real experiments can only tell us about temporal
statistical correlation? Can we freely use concepts from oscillation theory to
describe brain dynamics?
In this Research Topic we welcome contributions from different backgrounds and
perspectives to promote a deeper understanding of the relationship between
neural synchronization and physical coupling between neuronal networks, and its
implications for functional connectivity in the normal and the pathological
brain. This topic will include, among others, contributions with the following
themes:
1) Foundations of large-scale neural synchronization, based on physical
theories of oscillation.
2) The computational role and metabolic cost of neural synchronization, and its
relation to brain rhythms.
3) Behavioral and cognitive consequences of oscillatory activity in the human
brain.
4) Synthesis and state-of-the-art on measuring neural synchronization in
experimental settings.
5) Recent methods for the reconstruction of connectivity in oscillatory
networks.
6) Applications of the concept of neural coupling and oscillatory activity in a
medical setting, such as monitoring and control of neural synchronization in
brain pathologies affecting coordination dynamics.
Looking forward to have your contributions.Those interested please write to
Ramon Guevara (guevara.erra@gamil.com)
Best wishes,
Ramon Guevara Erra
University Paris Descartes, Paris, France
Jose Luis Perez Velazquez
Hospital for Sick Children and University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada