scholarly journals A spatial map in the somatosensory cortex

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xiaoyang Long ◽  
Sheng-Jia Zhang
Keyword(s):  
Somatosensory Cortex ◽  
Spatial Representation ◽  
Hippocampal Formation ◽  
Place Cells ◽  
Border Cells ◽  
Head Direction ◽  
Head Direction Cells ◽  
Sensory Inputs ◽  
Boundary Vector ◽  
The Brain

AbstractSpatially selective firing in the forms of place cells, grid cells, boundary vector/border cells and head direction cells are the basic building blocks of a canonical spatial navigation system centered on the hippocampal-entorhinal complex. While head direction cells can be found throughout the brain, spatial tuning outside the hippocampal formation are often non-specific or conjunctive to other representations such as a reward. Although the precise mechanism of spatially selective activities is not understood, various studies show sensory inputs (particularly vision) heavily modulate spatial representation in the hippocampal-entorhinal circuit. To better understand the contribution from other sensory inputs in shaping spatial representation in the brain, we recorded from the primary somatosensory cortex in foraging rats. To our surprise, we were able to identify the full complement of spatial activity patterns reported in the hippocampal-entorhinal network, namely, place cells, head direction cells, boundary vector/border cells, grid cells and conjunctive cells. These newly identified somatosensory spatial cell types form a spatial map outside the hippocampal formation and support the hypothesis that location information is necessary for body representation in the somatosensory cortex, and may be analogous to spatially tuned representations in the motor cortex relating to the movement of body parts. Our findings are transformative in our understanding of how spatial information is used and utilized in the brain, as well as functional operations of the somatosensory cortex in the context of rehabilitation with brain-machine interfaces.

scholarly journals A novel somatosensory spatial navigation system outside the hippocampal formation

Cell Research ◽  
2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xiaoyang Long ◽  
Sheng-Jia Zhang
Keyword(s):  
Somatosensory Cortex ◽  
Spatial Representation ◽  
Hippocampal Formation ◽  
Spatial Navigation ◽  
Place Cells ◽  
Head Direction ◽  
Head Direction Cells ◽  
Sensory Inputs ◽  
Boundary Vector ◽  
The Brain

AbstractSpatially selective firing of place cells, grid cells, boundary vector/border cells and head direction cells constitutes the basic building blocks of a canonical spatial navigation system centered on the hippocampal-entorhinal complex. While head direction cells can be found throughout the brain, spatial tuning outside the hippocampal formation is often non-specific or conjunctive to other representations such as a reward. Although the precise mechanism of spatially selective firing activity is not understood, various studies show sensory inputs, particularly vision, heavily modulate spatial representation in the hippocampal-entorhinal circuit. To better understand the contribution of other sensory inputs in shaping spatial representation in the brain, we performed recording from the primary somatosensory cortex in foraging rats. To our surprise, we were able to detect the full complement of spatially selective firing patterns similar to that reported in the hippocampal-entorhinal network, namely, place cells, head direction cells, boundary vector/border cells, grid cells and conjunctive cells, in the somatosensory cortex. These newly identified somatosensory spatial cells form a spatial map outside the hippocampal formation and support the hypothesis that location information modulates body representation in the somatosensory cortex. Our findings provide transformative insights into our understanding of how spatial information is processed and integrated in the brain, as well as functional operations of the somatosensory cortex in the context of rehabilitation with brain-machine interfaces.

scholarly journals Head-direction coding in the hippocampal formation of birds

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elhanan Ben-Yishay ◽  
Ksenia Krivoruchko ◽  
Shaked Ron ◽  
Nachum Ulanovsky ◽  
Dori Derdikman ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Hippocampal Formation ◽  
Place Cells ◽  
Border Cells ◽  
Head Direction ◽  
Avian Brain ◽  
Null Direction ◽  
Head Direction Cells ◽  
Preferred Direction ◽  
Japanese Quails ◽  
Recording Session

Birds strongly rely on spatial memory and navigation. However, it is unknown how space is represented in the avian brain. Here we used tetrodes to record neurons from the hippocampal formation (HPF) of Japanese quails – a migratory ground-dwelling species – while the quails roamed a 1×1-meter arena (>2,100 neurons from 21 birds). Whereas spatially-modulated cells (place-cells, border-cells, etc.) were generally not encountered, the firing-rate of 12% of the neurons was unimodally and significantly modulated by the head-azimuth – i.e. these were head-direction cells (HD cells, n=260). Typically, HD cells were maximally active at one preferred-direction and minimally at the opposite null-direction, with preferred-directions spanning all 360°. The HD tuning was relatively broad (mean= 130°), independent of the animal’s position and speed, and was stable during the recording-session. These findings support the existence of an allocentric head-direction representation in the quail HPF, and provide the first demonstration of head-direction cells in birds.

scholarly journals Functional connectivity of the entorhinal–hippocampal space circuit

2014 ◽  
Vol 369 (1635) ◽  
pp. 20120516 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sheng-Jia Zhang ◽  
Jing Ye ◽  
Jonathan J. Couey ◽  
Menno Witter ◽  
Edvard I. Moser ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Entorhinal Cortex ◽  
Cell Types ◽  
Place Cells ◽  
Projection Neurons ◽  
Border Cells ◽  
Head Direction ◽  
Grid Cells ◽  
Head Direction Cells ◽  
Dynamic Interactions ◽  
Cell Groups

The mammalian space circuit is known to contain several functionally specialized cell types, such as place cells in the hippocampus and grid cells, head-direction cells and border cells in the medial entorhinal cortex (MEC). The interaction between the entorhinal and hippocampal spatial representations is poorly understood, however. We have developed an optogenetic strategy to identify functionally defined cell types in the MEC that project directly to the hippocampus. By expressing channelrhodopsin-2 (ChR2) selectively in the hippocampus-projecting subset of entorhinal projection neurons, we were able to use light-evoked discharge as an instrument to determine whether specific entorhinal cell groups—such as grid cells, border cells and head-direction cells—have direct hippocampal projections. Photoinduced firing was observed at fixed minimal latencies in all functional cell categories, with grid cells as the most abundant hippocampus-projecting spatial cell type. We discuss how photoexcitation experiments can be used to distinguish the subset of hippocampus-projecting entorhinal neurons from neurons that are activated indirectly through the network. The functional breadth of entorhinal input implied by this analysis opens up the potential for rich dynamic interactions between place cells in the hippocampus and different functional cell types in the entorhinal cortex (EC).

scholarly journals Representation of Borders and Swimming Kinematics in the Brain of Freely-Navigating Fish

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ehud Vinepinsky ◽  
Lear Cohen ◽  
Shay Perchik ◽  
Ohad Ben-Shahar ◽  
Opher Donchin ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Brain Region ◽  
Building Blocks ◽  
Neural Representation ◽  
Water Tank ◽  
Border Cells ◽  
Head Direction ◽  
Neural Basis ◽  
Head Direction Cells ◽  
Swimming Kinematics ◽  
The Brain

AbstractLike most animals, the survival of fish depends crucially on navigation in space. This capacity has been documented in numerous behavioral studies that have revealed navigation strategies and the sensory modalities used for navigation. However, virtually nothing is known about how freely swimming fish represent space and locomotion in the brain to enable successful navigation. Using a novel wireless neural recording system, we measured the activity of single neurons in the goldfish lateral pallium, a brain region known to be involved in spatial memory and navigation, while the fish swam freely in a two-dimensional water tank. Four cell types were identified: border cells, head direction cells, speed cells and conjunction head direction with speed. Border cells were active when the fish was near the boundary of the environment. Head direction cells were shown to encode head direction. Speed cells only encoded the absolute speed independent of direction suggestive of an odometry signal. Finally, the conjunction of head direction with speed cells represented the velocity of the fish. This study thus sheds light on how information related to navigation is represented in the brain of swimming fish, and addresses the fundamental question of the neural basis of navigation in this diverse group of vertebrates. The similarities between our observations in fish and earlier findings in mammals may indicate that the networks controlling navigation in vertebrate originate from an ancient circuit common across vertebrates.SummaryNavigation is a fundamental behavioral capacity facilitating survival in many animal species. Fish is one lineage where navigation has been explored behaviorally, but it remains unclear how freely swimming fish represent space and locomotion in the brain. This is a key open question in our understanding of navigation in fish and more generally in understanding the evolutionary origin of the brain’s navigation system. To address this issue, we recorded neuronal signals from the brain of freely swimming goldfish and successfully identified representations of border and swimming kinematics in a brain region known to be associated with navigation. Our findings thus provide a glimpse into the building blocks of the neural representation underlying fish navigation. The similarity of the representation in fish with that of mammals may be key evidence supporting a preserved ancient mechanism across brain evolution.

scholarly journals An Oscillatory Network Model of Head Direction, Spatially Periodic Cells and Place Cells Using Locomotor Inputs

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Karthik Soman ◽  
Vignesh Muralidharan ◽  
V. Srinivasa Chakravarthy
Keyword(s):  
Path Integration ◽  
Place Cells ◽  
Border Cells ◽  
Head Direction ◽  
Grid Cells ◽  
Head Direction Cells ◽  
Modeling Approach ◽  
Spatially Periodic ◽  
Locomotor Rhythms ◽  
Oscillatory Network

AbstractWe propose a computational modeling approach that explains the formation of a range of spatial cells like head direction cells, grid cells, border cells and place cells which are believed to play a pivotal role in the spatial navigation of an animal. Most existing models insert special symmetry conditions in the models in order to obtain such symmetries in the outcome; our models do not require such symmetry assumptions. Our modeling approach is embodied in two models: a simple one (Model #1) and a more detailed version (Model #2). In Model #1, velocity input is presented to a layer of Head Direction cells, with no special topology requirements, the outputs of which are presented to a layer of Path Integration neurons. A variety of spatially periodic responses resembling grid cells, are obtained using the Principal Components of Path Integration layer. In Model #2, the input consists of the locomotor rhythms from the four legs of a virtual animal. These rhythms are integrated into the phases of a layer of oscillatory neurons, whose outputs drive a layer of Head Direction cells. The Head Direction cells in turn drive a layer of Path Integration neurons, which in turn project to two successive layers of Lateral Anti Hebbian Networks (LAHN). Cells in the first LAHN resemble grid cells (with both hexagonal and square gridness), and border cells. Cells in the second LAHN exhibit place cell behaviour and a new cell type known as corner cell. Both grid cells and place cells exhibit phase precession in 1D and 2D spaces. The models outline the neural hierarchy necessary to obtain the complete range of spatial cell responses found in the hippocampal system.

scholarly journals Transformation of the head-direction signal into a spatial code

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Adrien Peyrache ◽  
Natalie Schieferstein ◽  
Gyorgy Buzsaki
Keyword(s):  
Spatial Information ◽  
Place Cells ◽  
Spatial Code ◽  
Head Direction ◽  
Sensory Inputs ◽  
Boundary Vector ◽  
Current Location ◽  
Sensory Modalities ◽  
Navigational System ◽  
Specialized Neuron

AbstractAnimals integrate multiple sensory inputs to successfully navigate in their environments. Head direction (HD), boundary vector, grid and place cells in the entorhinal-hippocampal system form the brain’s navigational system that allows to identify the animal’s current location, but how the functions of these specialized neuron types are acquired remain to be understood. Here we report that activity of HD neurons are influenced by the ambulatory constraints imposed upon the animal by the boundaries of the explored environment, leading to spurious spatial information. However, in the post-subiculum, the main cortical stage of HD signal processing, HD neurons convey true spatial information in the form of border modulated activity through the integration of additional sensory modalities relative to egocentric position, unlike their driving thalamic inputs. These findings demonstrate how the combination of HD and egocentric information can be transduced into a spatial code.

Hippocampal Place-Cell Firing During Movement in Three-Dimensional Space

2001 ◽  
Vol 85 (1) ◽  
pp. 105-116 ◽  
Author(s):  
James J. Knierim ◽  
Bruce L. McNaughton
Keyword(s):  
Hippocampal Neurons ◽  
Horizontal Plane ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Place Cell ◽  
Place Cells ◽  
Limbic Cortex ◽  
Head Direction ◽  
Head Direction Cells ◽  
Recording Apparatus ◽  
Place Fields

“Place” cells of the rat hippocampus are coupled to “head direction” cells of the thalamus and limbic cortex. Head direction cells are sensitive to head direction in the horizontal plane only, which leads to the question of whether place cells similarly encode locations in the horizontal plane only, ignoring the z axis, or whether they encode locations in three dimensions. This question was addressed by recording from ensembles of CA1 pyramidal cells while rats traversed a rectangular track that could be tilted and rotated to different three-dimensional orientations. Cells were analyzed to determine whether their firing was bound to the external, three-dimensional cues of the environment, to the two-dimensional rectangular surface, or to some combination of these cues. Tilting the track 45° generally provoked a partial remapping of the rectangular surface in that some cells maintained their place fields, whereas other cells either gained new place fields, lost existing fields, or changed their firing locations arbitrarily. When the tilted track was rotated relative to the distal landmarks, most place fields remapped, but a number of cells maintained the same place field relative to the x-y coordinate frame of the laboratory, ignoring the z axis. No more cells were bound to the local reference frame of the recording apparatus than would be predicted by chance. The partial remapping demonstrated that the place cell system was sensitive to the three-dimensional manipulations of the recording apparatus. Nonetheless the results were not consistent with an explicit three-dimensional tuning of individual hippocampal neurons nor were they consistent with a model in which different sets of cells are tightly coupled to different sets of environmental cues. The results are most consistent with the statement that hippocampal neurons can change their “tuning functions” in arbitrary ways when features of the sensory input or behavioral context are altered. Understanding the rules that govern the remapping phenomenon holds promise for deciphering the neural circuitry underlying hippocampal function.

The neural assembly of place cells and head direction cells.

1997 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jeremy Philip Goodridge
Keyword(s):  
Place Cells ◽  
Head Direction ◽  
Head Direction Cells ◽  
Neural Assembly

scholarly journals Manifold-tiling Localized Receptive Fields are Optimal in Similarity-preserving Neural Networks

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anirvan M. Sengupta ◽  
Mariano Tepper ◽  
Cengiz Pehlevan ◽  
Alexander Genkin ◽  
Dmitri B. Chklovskii
Keyword(s):  
Neural Networks ◽  
Receptive Fields ◽  
Small Neighborhood ◽  
Place Cells ◽  
Optimal Solutions ◽  
Stimulus Space ◽  
Sensory Inputs ◽  
Similarity Preserving ◽  
Low Dimensional ◽  
The Brain

AbstractMany neurons in the brain, such as place cells in the rodent hippocampus, have localized receptive fields, i.e., they respond to a small neighborhood of stimulus space. What is the functional significance of such representations and how can they arise? Here, we propose that localized receptive fields emerge in similarity-preserving networks of rectifying neurons that learn low-dimensional manifolds populated by sensory inputs. Numerical simulations of such networks on standard datasets yield manifold-tiling localized receptive fields. More generally, we show analytically that, for data lying on symmetric manifolds, optimal solutions of objectives, from which similarity-preserving networks are derived, have localized receptive fields. Therefore, nonnegative similarity-preserving mapping (NSM) implemented by neural networks can model representations of continuous manifolds in the brain.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document