Assessing complexity in the formation of local neural areas in cortical development

The mechanism by which functional units, such as local neural areas, become established in the peripheral and central nervous system during both evolution and ontogenesis has long been a major issue in the neurosciences. Earlier studies highlight the need for a method of analyzing the complex connectivity of a cortical region to enable detection of more complex functions; resulting from repeated combinations of simpler ones. Our approach to the formation of local neural areas is based on a model which assigns a critical information processing role to glia and, more specifically, astrocytes and their interactions with neurons. The multiplicity of roles played by calcium (Ca/sup 2+/) and, specifically, fluctuations in the concentration of free intracellular Ca/sup 2+/ provide the framework of the model and offer a new approach to the problem of analyzing complex connectivity.