A cortical minicolumn (also called cortical microcolumn[1]) is a vertical column through the cortical layers of the brain. Neurons within the microcolumn "receive common inputs, have common outputs, are interconnected, and may well constitute a fundamental computational unit of the cerebral cortex".[2][3] Minicolumns comprise perhaps 80–120 neurons, except in the primate primary visual cortex (V1), where there are typically more than twice the number. There are about 2×108 minicolumns in humans.[4] From calculations, the diameter of a minicolumn is about 28–40 μm.[2] Minicolumns grow from progenitor cells within the embryo and contain neurons within multiple layers (2–6) of the cortex.[5]
Visualization of cortical minicolumns within a macrocolumn
Many sources support the existence of minicolumns, especially Mountcastle,[2] with strong evidence reviewed by Buxhoeveden and Casanova[6] who conclude "... the minicolumn must be considered a strong model for cortical organization" and "[the minicolumn is] the most basic and consistent template by which the neocortex organizes its neurones, pathways, and intrinsic circuits".
Cells in 50 μm minicolumn all have the same receptive field; adjacent minicolumns may have different fields.[7]
^Cruz, Luis; Buldyrev, Sergey; Peng, Shouyong; Roe, Daniel; Urban, Brigita; Stanley, HE; Rosene, Douglas (February 2005). "A statistically based density map method for identification and quantification of regional differences in microcolumnarity in the monkey brain". Journal of Neuroscience Methods. 141 (3): 321–332. doi:10.1016/j.jneumeth.2004.09.005. PMID 15661314. S2CID 6316809 – via Elsevier Science Direct.
^ abcMountcastle, Vernon (July 1957). "Modality and topographic properties of single neurons of cat's somatic sensory cortex". Journal of Neurophysiology. 20 (4): 408–34. doi:10.1152/jn.1957.20.4.408. PMID 13439410.
^Bennett, Max (July 2020). "An Attempt at a Unified Theory of the Neocortical Microcircuit in Sensory Cortex". Frontiers in Neural Circuits. 14: 40. doi:10.3389/fncir.2020.00040. PMC 7416357. PMID 32848632.
^Jeff Hawkins, Sandra Blakeslee On Intelligence p. 94
^Buxhoeveden, Daniel P.; Casanova, Manuel F. (May 2002). "The minicolumn hypothesis in neuroscience". Brain. 125 (Pt 5): 935–951. doi:10.1093/brain/awf110. ISSN 0006-8950. PMID 11960884.
^Cite error: The named reference Jones2000 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
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