Longitudinal study of perception of structured optic flow and random visual motion in infants using high-density EEG

AbstractThe processing of visual motion is carried out by dedicated pathways in the primate brain. These pathways originate with populations of direction-selective neurons in the primary visual cortex, which project to dorsal structures like the middle temporal (MT) and medial superior temporal (MST) areas. Anatomical and imaging studies have suggested that area V3A might also be specialized for motion processing, but there have been very few studies of single-neuron direction selectivity in this area. We have therefore performed electrophysiological recordings from V3A neurons in two macaque monkeys (one male and one female) and measured responses to a large battery of motion stimuli that includes translation motion, as well as more complex optic flow patterns. For comparison, we simultaneously recorded the responses of MT neurons to the same stimuli. Surprisingly, we find that overall levels of direction selectivity are similar in V3A and MT and moreover that the population of V3A neurons exhibits somewhat greater selectivity for optic flow patterns. These results suggest that V3A should be considered as part of the motion processing machinery of the visual cortex, in both human and non-human primates.Significance statementAlthough area V3A is frequently the target of anatomy and imaging studies, little is known about its functional role in processing visual stimuli. Its contribution to motion processing has been particularly unclear, with different studies yielding different conclusions. We report a detailed study of direction selectivity in V3A. Our results show that single V3A neurons are, on average, as capable of representing motion direction as are neurons in well-known structures like MT. Moreover, we identify a possible specialization for V3A neurons in representing complex optic flow, which has previously been thought to emerge in higher-order brain regions. Thus it appears that V3A is well-suited to a functional role in motion processing.

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Optic Flow: A History

i-Perception ◽

10.1177/20416695211055766 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 12 (6) ◽

pp. 204166952110557

Author(s):

Diederick C. Niehorster

Keyword(s):

Optic Flow ◽

Visual Motion ◽

Scientific Literature ◽

Archival Research ◽

Visual World ◽

Global Pattern ◽

Self Motion

The concept of optic flow, a global pattern of visual motion that is both caused by and signals self-motion, is canonically ascribed to James Gibson's 1950 book “ The Perception of the Visual World.” There have, however, been several other developments of this concept, chiefly by Gwilym Grindley and Edward Calvert. Based on rarely referenced scientific literature and archival research, this article describes the development of the concept of optic flow by the aforementioned authors and several others. The article furthermore presents the available evidence for interactions between these authors, focusing on whether parts of Gibson's proposal were derived from the work of Grindley or Calvert. While Grindley's work may have made Gibson aware of the geometrical facts of optic flow, Gibson's work is not derivative of Grindley's. It is furthermore shown that Gibson only learned of Calvert's work in 1956, almost a decade after Gibson first published his proposal. In conclusion, the development of the concept of optic flow presents an intriguing example of convergent thought in the progress of science.

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Central complex neurons exhibit behaviorally gated responses to visual motion in Drosophila

Journal of Neurophysiology ◽

10.1152/jn.00593.2013 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 111 (1) ◽

pp. 62-71 ◽

Cited By ~ 42

Author(s):

Peter T. Weir ◽

Bettina Schnell ◽

Michael H. Dickinson

Keyword(s):

Optic Flow ◽

Calcium Imaging ◽

Visual Motion ◽

Central Complex ◽

Direct Measure ◽

Forward Motion ◽

Sensory Stimuli ◽

Whole Cell Patch Clamp ◽

Baseline Activity ◽

Tethered Flight

Sensory systems provide abundant information about the environment surrounding an animal, but only a small fraction of that information is relevant for any given task. One example of this requirement for context-dependent filtering of a sensory stream is the role that optic flow plays in guiding locomotion. Flying animals, which do not have access to a direct measure of ground speed, rely on optic flow to regulate their forward velocity. This observation suggests that progressive optic flow, the pattern of front-to-back motion on the retina created by forward motion, should be especially salient to an animal while it is in flight, but less important while it is standing still. We recorded the activity of cells in the central complex of Drosophila melanogaster during quiescence and tethered flight using both calcium imaging and whole cell patch-clamp techniques. We observed a genetically identified set of neurons in the fan-shaped body that are unresponsive to visual motion while the animal is quiescent. During flight their baseline activity increases, and they respond to front-to-back motion with changes relative to this baseline. The results provide an example of how nervous systems selectively respond to complex sensory stimuli depending on the current behavioral state of the animal.

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Correlation of elevated levels of lipoprotein(a), high-density lipoprotein and low-density lipoprotein with severity of preeclampsia: a prospective longitudinal study

Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology ◽

10.1080/01443615.2019.1603214 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 40 (1) ◽

pp. 53-58 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Elena Konrad ◽

Onur Güralp ◽

Waleed Shaalan ◽

Alaa A. Elzarkaa ◽

Reham Moftah ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Longitudinal Study ◽

High Density Lipoprotein ◽

Low Density Lipoprotein ◽

Density Lipoprotein ◽

High Density ◽

Low Density ◽

Prospective Longitudinal Study ◽

Lipoprotein A ◽

Prospective Longitudinal

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A Neural Network for the Processing of Optic Flow from Ego-Motion in Man and Higher Mammals

Neural Computation ◽

10.1162/neco.1993.5.3.374 ◽

1993 ◽

Vol 5 (3) ◽

pp. 374-391 ◽

Cited By ~ 100

Author(s):

Markus Lappe ◽

Josef P. Rauschecker

Keyword(s):

Neural Network ◽

Motion Perception ◽

Network Model ◽

Neural Network Model ◽

Optic Flow ◽

Cortical Area ◽

Visual Motion ◽

Flow Fields ◽

Subspace Algorithm ◽

Motion Flow

Interest in the processing of optic flow has increased recently in both the neurophysiological and the psychophysical communities. We have designed a neural network model of the visual motion pathway in higher mammals that detects the direction of heading from optic flow. The model is a neural implementation of the subspace algorithm introduced by Heeger and Jepson (1990). We have tested the network in simulations that are closely related to psychophysical and neurophysiological experiments and show that our results are consistent with recent data from both fields. The network reproduces some key properties of human ego-motion perception. At the same time, it produces neurons that are selective for different components of ego-motion flow fields, such as expansions and rotations. These properties are reminiscent of a subclass of neurons in cortical area MSTd, the triple-component neurons. We propose that the output of such neurons could be used to generate a computational map of heading directions in or beyond MST.

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Longitudinal Study of Escherichia coli O157:H7 in a Beef Cattle Feedlot and Role of High-Level Shedders in Hide Contamination

Applied and Environmental Microbiology ◽

10.1128/aem.00081-09 ◽

2009 ◽

Vol 75 (20) ◽

pp. 6515-6523 ◽

Cited By ~ 93

Author(s):

Terrance M. Arthur ◽

James E. Keen ◽

Joseph M. Bosilevac ◽

Dayna M. Brichta-Harhay ◽

Norasak Kalchayanand ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Escherichia Coli ◽

Longitudinal Study ◽

Beef Cattle ◽

Intervention Studies ◽

High Density ◽

Escherichia Coli O157 ◽

E Coli ◽

High Level ◽

Cattle Feedlot

ABSTRACT The objectives of the study described here were (i) to investigate the dynamics of Escherichia coli O157:H7 fecal and hide prevalence over a 9-month period in a feedlot setting and (ii) to determine how animals shedding E. coli O157:H7 at high levels affect the prevalence and levels of E. coli O157:H7 on the hides of other animals in the same pen. Cattle (n = 319) were distributed in 10 adjacent pens, and fecal and hide levels of E. coli O157:H7 were monitored. When the fecal pen prevalence exceeded 20%, the hide pen prevalence was usually (25 of 27 pens) greater than 80%. Sixteen of 19 (84.2%) supershedder (>104 CFU/g) pens had a fecal prevalence greater than 20%. Significant associations with hide and high-level hide (≥40 CFU/100 cm2) contamination were identified for (i) a fecal prevalence greater than 20%, (ii) the presence of one or more high-density shedders (≥200 CFU/g) in a pen, and (iii) the presence of one or more supershedders in a pen. The results presented here suggest that the E. coli O157:H7 fecal prevalence should be reduced below 20% and the levels of shedding should be kept below 200 CFU/g to minimize the contamination of cattle hides. Also, large and unpredictable fluctuations within and between pens in both fecal and hide prevalence of E. coli O157:H7 were detected and should be used as a guide when preharvest studies, particularly preharvest intervention studies, are designed.

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