Onur Güntürkün

Publications (2)8.85 Total impact

• Source

  Available from: Geert De Groof

  Article: Functional MRI and Functional Connectivity of the Visual System of Awake Pigeons.

  Geert De Groof, Elisabeth Jonckers, Onur Güntürkün, Petra Denolf, Johan Van Auderkerke, Annemie Van der Linden
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  ABSTRACT: At present, functional MRI (fMRI) is increasingly used in animal research but the disadvantage is that the majority of the imaging is applied in anaesthetized animals. Only a few articles present results obtained in awake rodents. In this study both traditional fMRI and resting state (rsfMRI) were applied to four pigeons, that were trained to remain still while being imaged, removing the need for anesthesia. This is the first time functional connectivity measurements are performed in a non-mammalian species. Since the visual system of pigeons is a well-known model for brain asymmetry, the focus of the study was on the neural substrate of the visual system. For fMRI a visual stimulus was used and functional connectivity measurements were done with the Entopallium (E; analogue for the primary visual cortex) as a seed region. Interestingly in awake pigeons the left E was significantly functionally connected to the right E. Moreover we compared connectivity maps for a seed region in both hemispheres resulting in a stronger bilateral connectivity starting from left E then from right E. These results could be used as a starting point for further imaging studies in awake birds and also provide a new window into the analysis of hemispheric dominance in the pigeon.
  Behavioural brain research 11/2012; · 3.22 Impact Factor
• Article: A 3-dimensional digital atlas of the ascending sensory and the descending motor systems in the pigeon brain.

  Onur Güntürkün, Marleen Verhoye, Geert De Groof, Annemie Van der Linden
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  ABSTRACT: Pigeons are classic animal models for learning, memory, and cognition. The majority of the current understanding about avian neurobiology outside of the domain of the song system has been established using pigeons. Since MRI represents an increasingly relevant tool for comparative neuroscience, a 3-dimensional MRI-based atlas of the pigeon brain becomes essential. Using multiple imaging protocols, we delineated diverse ascending sensory and descending motor systems as well as the hippocampal formation. This pigeon brain atlas can easily be used to determine the stereotactic location of identified neural structures at any angle of the head. In addition, the atlas is useful to find the optimal angle of sectioning for slice experiments, stereotactic injections and electrophysiological recordings. This pigeon brain atlas is freely available for the scientific community.
  Brain Structure and Function 02/2012; · 5.63 Impact Factor