A neuroscience research jointly conducted by PolyU and the Chinese Academy of Science (CAS) has led to the discovery of a previously unknown feature of the human brain – the novelty detection mechanism in the gateway to the cerebral cortex. The finding was reported in the September issue of Nature Neuroscience and highlighted by Nature (China), both being publications of the Nature Publishing Group.

This research was being undertaken at the University’s Applied Neuroscience Laboratory by a team led by Prof. He Jufang of PolyU Department of Rehabilitation Sciences and his student and Prof. He Shigang in CAS Institute of Biophysics. The study found that the thalamic reticular neurons which reside in the position as the guardian of the gateway to the cerebral cortex, responded to novel stimulus a lot better than to the repeated stimulus.

The finding advanced our understanding of the neurons’potential roles. Malfunction of these neurons might cause attention deficit disorders and tinnitus, the perception of sound within the human ear in the absence of corresponding external sound. Details >>