Topic: Research of the Cortex.

Nowadays there are renowned research centers in our country where researchers do a great work. The results of their studies are published in major international journals such as Nature, British Medical Journal, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, etc.

In this article we make reference to the results published by a young researcher, Juan Manuel Abolafia, IDIBAPS in Barcelona (Institut d’Investigacions August Pi i Sunyer Biomedical) on auditory cortex.

Although the phenomenon of neuronal adaptation has been studied for years, yet their neurophysiological mechanisms are discussed.

The authors demonstrated through a parallel study in the awake animal and brain slices that the potassium currents present in communication between neurons (synapses) play an important role in neuronal adaptation.

This same research group also studied the neuronal basis of auditory attention, specifically how neurons in the auditory cortex estimate temporal aspects of stimuli. The authors found that neurons modulate their activity in terms of care and learning, ultimately depending on the environment and the context.

These basic science investigations are fundamental to understanding the physiology or functioning of our brain, the neurological diseases and possible treatments of them.

In addition we want to support research in Spain to avoid the “brain drain“.

(Edited by Dr. María Moya Guirao, MD)