NEURAL REPRESENTATION OF DIVERSE TACTILE TEXTURES IN THE MOUSE VENTRAL POSTERIOR LATERAL THALAMUS

Tactile perception relies on the integration of complex signals from peripheral mechanoreceptors, with the ventral posterior lateral (VPL) nucleus of the thalamus serving as a critical relay for transmitting these inputs to the cortex. While the processing of basic tactile stimuli has been documented, how the VPL encodes complex, realistic tactile textures remains to be fully elucidated. This study aims to characterize the neural encoding principles of diverse tactile textures within the mouse VPL. To achieve this, we developed a custom cylinder-based tactile stimulation device capable of delivering precise and reproducible tactile samples to experimental animals. Using this system, we presented a variety of standard tactile surfaces to C57BL/6 mice while performing in vivo recordings of neuronal activity in the VPL. We subsequently analyzed the response patterns evoked by each sample to determine the specificity of the neural code. Our preliminary results demonstrate that VPL neurons exhibit distinct firing patterns corresponding to different tactile textures, confirming that the mouse thalamus can effectively discriminate between various standard tactile stimuli at an early processing stage. These findings provide fundamental insights into the thalamic mechanisms underlying texture perception. Furthermore, understanding these encoding principles will serve as a crucial basis for the development and application of effective virtual tactile stimulation in the future, potentially enhancing sensory feedback in neuroprosthetics and virtual reality environments.