Afferent volley from the digital nerve induces short-latency facilitation of perceptual sensitivity and primary sensory cortex excitability

The present study examined whether the perceptual sensitivity and excitability of the primary sensory cortex are modulated by the afferent volley from the digital nerve of a conditioned finger within a short period of time. The perceptual threshold of an electrical stimulus to the index finger (test stimulus) was decreased by a conditioning stimulus to the index finger 4 or 6 ms before the test stimulus, or by a stimulus to the middle or ring finger 2 ms before that. This is explained by the view that the afferent volleys from the digital nerves of the fingers converge in the somatosensory areas, causing spatial summation of the afferent inputs through a small number of synaptic relays, leading to the facilitation of perceptual sensitivity. The N20 component of the somatosensory-evoked potential was facilitated by a conditioning stimulus to the middle finger 4 ms before a test stimulus or to the thumb 2 ms before the test stimulus. This is explained by the view that the afferent volley from the digital nerve of the finger adjacent to the tested finger induces lateral facilitation of the representation of the tested finger in the primary sensory cortex through a small number of synaptic relays.