Topic: inter-areal communication

Recurrent neural networks (RNNs) trained on working memory (WM) tasks have been the subject of extensive study. These networks typically contain one or more aspects of biological-implausibility, such as the adoption of saturating output functions (tanh), violation of Dale's Law or introduction of artificial elements (LSTM). They also have over-simplistic input pathways such as binary cues, which are insufficient to represent the rich dynamics found in sensory brain areas. In particular, the role of inter-areal communication between sensory and association areas for WM has been critically under

The anterior insula cortex (AIC) and claustrum (CLA ) are two closely related brain regions. AIC is thought to integrate visceral information, suggesting it plays a role in interoceptive inference, thereby providing a possible neural mechanism for consciousness. Studies on CLA indicate that it is a cortical hub for orchestrating inter-areal communication. Because of the strong interaction between CLA and AIC, combined they could play a role in consciousness. Here we have undertaken to compare our findings in macaque with those in rodent. Retrograde tracers were injected in macaque brain AIC an