Lectures and seminars Cognitive Neuroscience Club with Michael Dimitriou: "It also happens in the periphery: Advanced signal-processing at the level of muscle spindles"

"It also happens in the periphery: Advanced signal-processing at the level of muscle spindles"

Speaker

Dr. Michael Dimitriou, Research Fellow, Department of Integrative Medical Biology, Umeå University, Sweden.

Muscle spindles are encapsulated sensory organs found in most of our muscles. It is commonly assumed that the role of spindles is to provide reliable information concerning muscle stretch. In my talk, I will argue that the traditional view of the spindle as a basic mechanoreceptor is outdated. Spindle neurons can be independently tuned by spinal γ motor neurons that receive top-down and peripheral input, including from cutaneous afferents. I propose that spindles under different control play a flexible and higher-level role, providing a unique service to the nervous system: that of a peripheral signal-processing device that helps augment and expedite sensorimotor performance. This proposal can unify previous -seemingly contradictory- knowledge about spindles and more recent findings in humans engaged in fundamental sensorimotor tasks. Incorporation of advanced (e.g., selective) signal-processing at the periphery may prove a critical step in the evolution of sensorimotor control theories.