A predominant but less studied sensory pathway for both vibrissa self-motion and touch inputs is shown to broadcast broadly to brainstem regions involved in regulation of autonomic functions as well as forebrain regions involved in expression of emotional reactions.

Changing which layer 6 neurons are active during sensory tasks disrupts the detection and encoding of changes, but still allows integration of sensory information in the absence of changes.

Primary sensory neurons of the rat whisker system encode contact with objects in terms of the forces exerted on whiskers, rather than the induced whisker movements.

A simple fluorescent dye method allows visualization of whiskers, facilitating studies of rodent tactile behavior.

The 'Optoclamp' is a feedback control technology that enables precise, continuously updated, closed-loop optical control of neural firing both in vitro and in vivo.

Primary motor cortex afferents supra-linearly amplify the responses and sharpen angular tuning of neurons in the S1 barrel cortex.

Electrophysiology and information theory show that diverse classes of mechanoreceptors in the face inform the mouse brain about whisking.

Neurons within rat somatosensory cortex are selective to texture and are spatially organized according to their texture preference.

Light can be used to trigger the contraction of facial muscles and movement of the whiskers in transgenic mice, aiding the study of active sensation.

A new three-step monosynaptic premotor tracing strategy in adult mice, together with registration to the Allen mouse common coordinate framework, uncovered precise spatial relationships of distinct orofacial premotor circuits in the brainstem.